Project Hope to Lead First-Ever, Large-Scale Diabetes Education and Training Initiative in India
Project Hope to Lead First-Ever, Large-Scale Diabetes Education and Training Initiative in India
November 12, 2007
The India Diabetes Educator Project, the first large-scale initiative to train and educate health care professionals in India about the disease, was announced today by Project HOPE, an international health education and humanitarian assistance organization, and its corporate partners, BD, Eli Lilly and Company, and Bayer Diabetes Care. The four-year, multi-million dollar collaborative program is designed to help health care workers in India reduce morbidity and mortality related to diabetes and to combat the rapidly growing threat of diabetes there. With an estimated 40.9 million people currently living with the condition, India leads the world in the prevalence of diabetes (1).
The India Diabetes Educator Project offers a comprehensive and sustainable approach that will provide diabetes training to more than 5,000 health care professionals, including nurses, dieticians and nutritionists in India. The project includes mentoring support for newly trained Diabetes Educators and also addresses the role of the educator in empowering the patient to take responsibility for daily self-care and to help prevent the onset of diabetes among those at-risk. The training will be based on the International Curriculum for Diabetes Health Professional Education developed by the International Federation Consultative Section on Diabetes Education (IDF-DECS) curriculum, adapted for use in India. Implementation of this curriculum will help establish a consistent and standardized protocol for diabetes treatment throughout the country, with the goal of improving patient quality of life and increasing positive self-care behaviors and control of diabetes.
"India is at the forefront of the growing global diabetes epidemic and is in urgent need of trained Diabetes Educators," said John P. Howe III, M.D., President and CEO of Project HOPE. "With the support of our corporate partners, Project HOPE can make meaningful contributions to improving levels of professional care and patient self-management for many hundreds of thousands of people in India living with diabetes."
There is a great need for trained health care professionals in India, including nurses, dieticians and nutritionists, to educate patients about proper diabetes care. In India's urban areas approximately 12 percent of adults live with diabetes, compared to only seven percent in the United States (CDC data, 2005) and the United Kingdom. Additionally, research has identified a genetic factor that predisposes Indians to the development of diabetes (2). Inadequate control of diabetes can be associated with serious medical complications, including blindness, stroke, heart disease and kidney failure. In fact, diabetes is the second most common cause of blindness in India, surpassed only by cataracts.
Project HOPE, BD, Eli Lilly and Company, and Bayer Diabetes Care bring over a decade of successful collaboration on diabetes education interventions to this effort. The skills, resources and experience of Project HOPE and partners, combined with the expertise of the IDF-DECS curriculum, will work to tackle the challenges of diabetes education, prevention and treatment in India.
"India is one of the largest populations with the highest prevalence of diabetes worldwide, and can benefit significantly from higher levels of diabetes self-management education, care, and treatment services," said William Marshall, President, BD Medical-Diabetes Care.
"Success in treating diabetes will not come from pharmaceutical interventions alone," said Lorenzo Tallarigo, M.D., President of International Operations, Eli Lilly and Company. "We believe that Project HOPE and The India Diabetes Educator Project will have a positive impact in helping health care professionals meet the current and future patient needs in India."
"As World Diabetes Day approaches, it is important to recognize the health education needs of countries such as India," said Sandra Peterson, President, Bayer Diabetes Care. "With access to standardized diabetes education, health care professionals in India can help empower patients to manage their disease and help prevent long-term complications."
About the India Diabetes Educator Project
The India Diabetes Educator Project is a four-year collaborative effort to address the rapidly growing problem of diabetes in India. The program combines the world-class training expertise of the International Diabetes Federation and the technical advisory skills of corporate partners with Project HOPE's "hands-on" program management and implementation capacity. The program offers a comprehensive and sustainable approach that goes beyond training large numbers of Diabetes Educators. It addresses the challenges of assuring an enabling environment for Diabetes Educators and affecting behavior change among primary health care physicians. Finally, it provides mentoring support for newly trained Diabetes Educators and helps the patient become empowered to share the responsibility for his/her own health care, rather than relying solely on others.
About Project HOPE
Founded in 1958, Project HOPE (Health Opportunities for People Everywhere) is dedicated to providing lasting solutions to health problems, with the mission of helping people to help themselves. Identifiable to many by the SS HOPE, the world's first peacetime hospital ship, Project HOPE, headquartered in Millwood, Va., now conducts land-based medical training and health education programs in 36 countries across five continents. For more information, visit http://www.projecthope.org.
About BD
BD, a leading global medical technology company that manufactures and sells medical devices, instrument systems and reagents, is dedicated to improving people's health throughout the world. BD is focused on improving drug therapy, enhancing the quality and speed of diagnosing infectious diseases, and advancing research and discovery of new drugs and vaccines. The Company's capabilities are instrumental in combating many of the world's most pressing diseases. Founded in 1897 and headquartered in Franklin Lakes, New Jersey, BD employs approximately 28,000 people in approximately 50 countries throughout the world. The Company serves healthcare institutions, life science researchers, clinical laboratories, industry and the general public. For more information, please visit http://www.bd.com.
About Eli Lilly and Company
Lilly, a leading innovation-driven corporation, is developing a growing portfolio of first-in-class and best-in-class pharmaceutical products by applying the latest research from its own worldwide laboratories and from collaborations with eminent scientific organizations. Headquartered in Indianapolis, Ind., Lilly provides answers - through medicines and information - for some of the world's most urgent medical needs. For more information, please visit http://www.lilly.com.
About Bayer HealthCare Diabetes Care
Bayer HealthCare Diabetes Care supports customers in 100 countries. Since the introduction of CLINITEST® reagent tablets in 1941, Bayer has led the way in diabetes care product innovation. In 1969, Bayer changed the face of diabetes care when it introduced the first portable blood glucose meter and test strips. Bayer further innovated diabetes management by being the first company to introduce a suite of blood glucose monitors with No Coding technology.
In 2006, Bayer Diabetes Care acquired Metrika Inc., maker and manufacturer of A1CNow+, a meter-based diabetes monitoring system for measurement of HbA1c (glycated hemoglobin). Bayer HealthCare Diabetes Care global headquarters is located in Tarrytown, New York, in the United States and operates as part of Bayer HealthCare LLC, a member of the worldwide Bayer HealthCare group. For more information, please visit www.bayerhealthcare.com
(1) International Diabetes Federation. "Did You Know?" Accessed October 19, 2007 at http://www.idf.org/home/index.cfm?node=37.
(2) Warrier, Shobha. "Diabetes: As a Curse on Indians," November 5, 2002. Accessed July 2007 at http://www.rediff.com/news/2002/nov/05spec.htm.
CONTACT:
Rand Walton
Director, Strategic Communications
Office: +1-540-837-9469
Mobile: +1-540-429-7425
Email: rwalton@projecthope.org
SOURCE Project HOPE
http://www.projecthope.org
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