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TEHRAN – As people with diabetes are at increased risk for serious complications associated with COVID-19, diabetes prevention must be considered more closely than ever.
In 2007, the UN General Assembly designated November 14 as World Diabetes Day and emphasized “the urgent need for multilateral efforts to promote and improve human health and provide access to treatment and education for health care. “.
The theme for World Diabetes Day 2020 is Nurses Make a Difference. The campaign aims to raise awareness of the crucial role nurses play in supporting people living with diabetes.
The burden of diabetes is heavier
About 11 percent of Iranians over the age of 25, representing 5 million people, suffer from diabetes, and 18 percent of the population is prediabetic, Health Ministry official Alireza Mahdavi said in November 2019.
In Iran, 25 percent of the people are unaware of their diabetes, which is 50 percent in the world; in West Asia and North Africa, 60 percent of people are unaware of their diabetes.
Approximately 422 million people worldwide have diabetes, the majority living in low- and middle-income countries, and 1.6 million deaths are directly attributed to diabetes each year.
Both the number of cases and the prevalence of diabetes have steadily increased over the past decades. It is expected that by 2030, 578 million people will develop diabetes, and the number of patients may exceed 700 million by 2045.
In 2019, 4.2 million people died of diabetes. And now, 50 percent of coronavirus patients were diabetic.
Around 90 percent of diabetics are diagnosed with type 2 diabetes worldwide. Education, personal care and a healthy lifestyle and the use of medications are effective in controlling the disease.
Type 2 diabetes can be prevented and, in some cases, can be cured early. Lack of access to insulin, failure in early diagnosis of type 1 diabetes leading to diabetic ketoacidosis is a common cause of death in children and adolescents.
Diabetes is one of the leading causes of blindness, kidney failure, heart attack, stroke, and lower limb amputation. A healthy diet, physical activity, and avoiding tobacco use can prevent or delay type 2 diabetes. Also, diabetes can be treated and its consequences can be prevented or delayed with medications, regular screenings, and treatment for complications.
Nurses play a vital role
Currently, nurses represent more than half of the global health workforce. They do exceptional work helping people living with a wide range of health problems. People living with diabetes or at risk of developing the disease also need your support.
People living with diabetes face a number of challenges, and education is vital in equipping nurses with the skills to help them.
As the number of people with diabetes continues to increase around the world, the role of nurses and other healthcare professional support personnel becomes increasingly important in managing the impact of the disease.
Healthcare providers and governments must recognize the importance of investing in education and training. With the right experience, nurses can make a difference for people affected by diabetes.
Nurses make up 59 percent of healthcare workers as the largest group in this career. The global nursing workforce is 27.9 million, more than 19.3 million of whom are professional nurses.
About 90 percent of the nursing workforce are women.
National Diabetic Week
In Iran, National Diabetes Week is held from November 14-20 in light of the COVID-19 pandemic.
The health ministry has assigned a special theme to each day of the week as follows:
Saturday, November 14: the role of self-care in diabetes management
Sunday, November 15: the role of nurses in the diagnosis and control of diabetes
Monday, November 16: 100th anniversary of the discovery of insulin
Tuesday, November 17: the role of health workers and health ambassadors in diabetes prevention and control education
Wednesday, November 18: the role of digital technology in diabetes self-care and control
Thursday, November 19: the role of healthy nutrition and physical activity in the prevention and control of diabetes
Friday, November 20: the role of optimal diabetes control in reducing the risk of complications from COVID-19
FB / MG
