World Diabetes Day is the world’s most extensive diabetes awareness campaign reaching a global audience of over 1 billion people in more than 160 countries. The campaign draws attention to issues of paramount importance to the diabetes world and keeps diabetes firmly in the public and political spotlight. This year’s theme is “Family and Diabetes.”
What is Diabetes?
Diabetes is a disease that occurs when your blood glucose, also called blood sugar, is too high. Over time, having too much glucose in your blood can cause health problems, such as heart disease, nerve damage, eye problems, and kidney disease. The good news is that with the proper knowledge and tools, you can take steps to prevent diabetes and manage it so that you may live a normal life.
According to the National Institute for Diabetes and Digestive and Kidney Diseases (NIDDK), an estimated 30.3 million people in the U.S (9.4% of the population) have diabetes. Worst yet, about 1 in 4 people with diabetes don’t know they have it. An estimated 84.1 million Americans aged 18 years or older have prediabetes.
Who’s at risk?
Some types of diabetes — like type 1 — are caused by factors that are out of your control. Others — like type 2 — can be prevented with better food choices, increased physical activity, and weight loss. Discuss potential diabetes risks with your doctor. If you’re at risk, have your blood sugar tested and follow your doctor’s advice for managing your blood sugar.
RxTarget™: Abarca’s Clinical Program for Adherence
RxTarget™ is a predictive analytics web tool developed to help increase the efficiency of our Pharmacy Network and clients in the effort to improve patients’ adherence to medications. In the case of Diabetes, RxTarget not only identifies patients who require interventions to improve adherence to oral diabetes medications, but also allows to target other clinical interventions that have proven to decrease morbidity and mortality, for example, those patients with diabetes who are not using cardiovascular preventive medications such as statins (cholesterol-lowering drugs).
“This platform, which is updated daily, allows the pharmacy team to easily and effectively identify patients who need additional support to improve their adherence and who are more likely to impact CMS adherence metrics positively,” said Suzette Velez, PharmD, BCACP, BCGP, and Director of Clinical Services at Abarca Health.
When left untreated or unmanaged, diabetes can lead to life-changing complications. Fortunately, there is support and resources out there –with adequate information, you can help change the course of your own or someone else’s life. The NIDDK, along with many other organizations, provides overviews on diabetes prevention, symptoms, changes you can make in your diet and exercise routines, and management of the condition.
The first step in preventing diabetes is knowing your risk. Abarca stands committed to raise awareness on the impact diabetes has on our communities through education to dispel the ignorance around the chronic illness and continue advocacy for those living with it.