Following an extensive application process, the Diabetes Education Program at Dartmouth-Hitchcock Medical Center recently received the American Diabetes Association Certificate of Recognition.
Since education is such an integral part of diabetes treatment, the Diabetes Center has always incorporated an element of education into its program, said Dr. Lee Witters, chief of endocrinology, diabetes and metabolism at the DHMC.
The Diabetes Center's education program includes one-on-one education, support groups, video tapes and mailings, Witters said.
"A lot of the education is built into patients' visits," Witters said. "When they come for an appointment, patients can learn about methods of insulin injection, exercise programs and diets. Each time they come, they're educated."
Centers across the nation apply for certification, he said.
"It's a sort of seal of approval," he said. "It is recognition that patients can get the very best in education at the DHMC. It's not easily awarded."
The ADA certification process began in 1986 to encourage the development of high quality diabetes education programs.
Witters said the Diabetes Center received the certificate because it has "unique resources."
"We're blessed with some great doctors and great nurses at DHMC," he said.
But he said the Diabetes Center's resources extend past its doctors and nurses.
"It's not just come here because there are good doctors and nurses here who can take care of your disease," he said. "There is an actual education program where patients can come and learn about their disease, how to respond to their diseases at home and when to contact a care giver."
Witters emphasized that the Diabetes Center is an important resource for College undergraduates either through Dick's House or through the DHMC.
"This is not just a resource for people who live permanently in the Upper Valley," he said. "It's also for undergraduates with diabetes as well."
He said undergraduates are fortunate to have two Dick's House physicians, including Director of College Health Services Jack Turco, who are on-site to take care of students who have diabetes.
"Students may be referred to the Diabetes Center, but it has no direct effect on students," Turco said.
Witters said the Diabetes Center's education program is not just for patients.
"We have a continuing education program for nurses and physicians to update them on what's going on in diabetes," he said. "It's a community resource. It's not just for patients."
The Diabetes Center also conducts a summer camp for teenagers with diabetes, he said.
"They do all kinds of camp things," Witters said, "But they also learn about their disease in the context of the lifestyle of adolescents."
The Diabetes Center serves the entire northern New Hampshire area, he said.
The ADA probably "took into account the fact that we're the major facility around," Witters said.
