November is American Diabetes Month and November 14 is World Diabetes Day. A research paper recently published by Fenway Health medical providers highlights the effectiveness of a continuing medical education (CME) course focusing on diabetes diet/nutrition and nutritional counseling.
Fenway Health’s Dr. Daniel Kahn, DNP published Impact of a Nutrition and Diabetes Continuing Education Program on Primary Care Provider’s Knowledge, Attitude, and Clinical Practice in Advances in Medical Education and Practice in Advances in Medical Education and Practice. Kahn conducted research with Fenway’s primary care providers (PCPs) regarding diabetes nutrition education pre- and post-CME lecture. The results showed improvement in knowledge of diet/lifestyle modification, acknowledgement of effectiveness of counseling, and change in clinical practice after a single CME session.
Fellow Fenway Health medical provider Stephen Dunn, DO participated in this project with Dan as the organizational expert and is credited a co-author. In addition to this recent publication, Dr. Kahn has disseminated the findings of this study at several local and national conferences. You can read the article online here.
Diabetes is a disease that occurs when your blood glucose, also called blood sugar, is too high. Glucose is your body’s main source of energy. Your body can make glucose, but glucose also comes from the food you eat. Diabetes raises the risk for damage to the eyes, kidneys, nerves, and heart and is also linked to some types of cancer. Taking steps to prevent or manage diabetes may lower your risk of developing diabetes health problems.
“As a result of this study, PCPs knowledge and clinical practice improved. It is great to know that PCPs used the knowledge gained from the education session and taught our patients with uncontrolled diabetes about ways to improve their health through diet and nutrition. As Hippocrates once said, ‘Let food be thy medicine, and medicine be thy food’,” said Dr. Kahn.
” It’s very exciting to be part of a project that not only is beneficial to medical provider education, but also to the long-term health outcomes of patients living with diabetes,” said Dr. Dunn.
Founded in 1971, Fenway Health advocates for and delivers innovative, equitable, accessible health care, supportive services, and transformative research and education. We center LGBTQIA+ people, BIPOC individuals, and other underserved communities to enable our local, national, and global neighbors to flourish.