Healthcare Providers and Patients: A Stronger Partnership

Perspectives

Healthcare Providers and Patients: A Stronger Partnership

On January 26th, 2018, Robin Wright, a patient with Type 2, psychotherapist and PODS Leader in Princeton NJ, delivered remarks at the opening panel discussion of the American Association of Clinical Endocrinologists meeting / CAP (Corporate AACE Partnership).  The subject was Identifying Access to Care, Identifying Unmet Needs of Patients and/or Clinicians and Generating Solutions to Address the Unmet Needs of patients.  We are pleased to bring you Robin's remarks in full:


I have been living with Type 2 diabetes for 18 years. After years of unsuccessful management, I realized my urgent need for more support. I took the Stanford Disease Self-Management training and began a peer support group which is now part of the national organization, DiabetesSisters. In the past 6 years of listening to the stories of Type 1 and Type 2 diabetics, I have heard the fallout from initial diagnosis, the ups and downs of diabetes distress, and the movement from diabetes denial to active self- management. I have come to understand that successful self-management is the critical factor in staying as healthy as possible. Learning self-management is not accomplished in isolation. Successful self- management is based on collaboration with health care providers, the shared wisdom of peers, and family support. I have been more successful in managing my disease because I have found a way to learn how I have to change my lifestyle skills through better nutrition and exercise, better communication with my family, asking for help, setting achievable goals and less passivity with healthcare providers. I hope this meeting will strengthen the partnership between healthcare providers, pharmaceuticals, and the patient. In order to strengthen the patient role as an effective partner, there is a need for ongoing emotional and behavioral support. There also needs to be continuing lifestyle education with positive incentives. All these efforts can’t be done in an office visit. I hope these patient needs can be seen as essentia,l and continued resources can be used to support their existence. When I asked members of my group what should I say, one woman said: "Tell them this group has been a lifesaver for me”. If a volunteer organization like DiabetesSisters has done so much, how can we do more together?

Robin Wright AACERobin Wright speaking at AACE

DiabetesSisters wishes to thank Robin Wright all she does to advocate on behalf of all women living with diabetes.