A Diabetes Fair at Schneider Hospital on Friday hopes to help people with the disease better understand and manage their condition.
The educational effort – from 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. in the Schneider lobby – is free and open to the public.
Catherine Stauffer, a Schneider hospital registered dietician, stressed that the disease, which is extremely prevalent in the territory, can be prevented or managed as long as people "are educated and feel empowered."
Booths in the lobby will offer information and presentations ranging from a healthy diet to coping with chronic illness, proper care for eyes and teeth, Tai Chi, massage therapy, swimming classes and Medicare information.
Speakers are scheduled at half-hour intervals throughout the day, on subjects ranging from nutrition to foot care, with a healthy cooking demonstration scheduled for 11:05 a.m. (Click here for a full schedule, or here for the list of booth participants.)
Blood sugar testing will be offered by a nurse and a certified diabetes educator.
Also, Stauffer said, people can bring their meters from home, should they have questions on how to use them. Diabetics who don’t own a meter can bring their insurance cards and sign up to receive one.
Currently at least 15 vendors and agencies have signed up to participate, said Stauffer, who’s looking forward to being able to help educate the community on the disease.
She cited a sobering statistic: "In the Virgin Islands, 64 percent of diabetics report they have never taken a course on how to manage the disease," she said. "Many sick people in the hospital who have had diabetes for 10 years can’t identify what foods affect their blood sugar."
Stauffer said, "These people should have learned how to care for themselves by now. Clearly, the information isn’t getting where it needs to go, if you have that knowledge deficit. That is shocking."
It is the staff’s aim to fill that deficit with knowledge and opportunities on Friday.
While lamenting the lack of education, Stauffer said she looks forward to Friday. "Wellness fairs are a good venue, so we hope people will come and educate themselves."
