Support Group, Compassionate Nurse Guide Patients With Diabetes

One out of every four Americans over 60 ­ – and one in 10 over 20 – lives with diabetes. At Parma Hospital, there is a certified diabetic educator devoted to showing patients how to make those manageable, quality years.

Parma Hospital’s diabetes education program has been recognized by both the American Diabetes Association and the Centers for Disease Control as a model quality diabetes program. Karen Krauth, a nationally certified diabetes educator, is at the helm of this support network.

On the second Thursday of every month, the Diabetes Support Group meets in the hospital’s Auditorium. Krauth invites informative speakers, including podiatrists, dietitians and other experts. She has even cooked an entire meal from appetizers to the main course to dessert to demonstrate that preparing low-sugar, low-fat foods is not only possible but delicious.

Meetings take place September through May from 7 to 9 p.m. The group does not meet in December. An average of 40 people attend meetings, and nearly 70 people went to the first meeting of the group’s 15th year.

According to the American Diabetes Association, one out of every three children born today will face a future with diabetes if current trends continue. Endocrinologist Richard Koletsky, MD, a physician liaison for Parma Hospital’s diabetes program, says physicians cannot properly manage the health of diabetic patients unless they are educated in a structured program.

Krauth meets individually with patients to provide one-on-one counseling on checking blood sugar, taking insulin and managing life with diabetes.

She notes that the terms juvenile diabetes and adult-onset diabetes have been replaced with simply Type 1, or insulin-dependent diabetes that requires daily shots, and Type 2, in which the body makes insulin but supply in insufficient. If diagnosed early, Type 2 diabetes can typically be controlled with diet and exercise.

People face pre-diabetes if on two separate occasions they register a fasting blood glucose of 100-125.

November is American Diabetes Month. Parma Hospital’s Diabetes Support Group meets on Thursday, November 11 for its final session of the year. Meetings will resume in January.

To reach Karen Krauth RN at Parma Hospital, call 440-743-2348.

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