ROCKLAND, Maine — The Pen Bay Healthcare Diabetes and Nutritional Care Center has received the American Diabetes Association Education Recognition Certificate for its diabetes self-management education program, the facility announced.
The program, housed at the Kno-Wal-Lin Home Care and Hospice offices at 170 Pleasant St., received the award Sept. 3. The center can be reached by phone at 596-8537.
Pen Bay Healthcare personnel at the center are registered dietitians and diabetes educators Eileen Molloy and Marcia Kyle and registered nurses Brenda Berry and Donna Dugal.
Self-management education is an essential component of diabetes treatment, according to Barbara Moran, community liaison at Kno-Wal-Lin. The center teaches participants self-care skills that promote better management of a diabetic’s treatment regimen.
Education programs cover the diabetes disease process, nutrition, physical activity and medications, as well as preventing, monitoring, detecting and treating acute complications.
With the support of the center, a patient can assume a major part of the responsibility for his or her diabetes management, Moran said. Unnecessary hospital admissions and some of the acute and chronic complications of diabetes may be prevented through self-management education.
The ADA Education Recognition effort is a voluntary process that assures that approved programs have met the national standards for diabetes self-management education. To meet these standards, programs must have a staff of knowledgeable health professionals who can provide state-of-the-art information about diabetes management for participants.
For information, visit www.penbayhealthcare.org.