After the Annual General Meeting held during the February meeting we were pleased to welcome Lisa Cooper, a Diabetes Specialist Nurse from the Specialist Diabetes Service at Gloucestershire Care Services.

Lisa gave a very  interesting talk on what effects diabetes has on different parts the body such as the pancreas, eyes, muscles etc.  To make it easier to understand she used some of the props and material used in the “Diabetes and You” course that the  Specialist Diabetes Service run.  One of the interesting points, which of course most with diabetes know, but probably do not always think about, was about the different ways food & drinks work in relation to carbohydrates and whether they are fast or slow acting.

Lisa also gave a brief explanation of the three courses they run for those with Type 2 diabetes, as follows:

Diabetes and You:  Ideal for newly diagnosed or as a refresher course.  It helps you get an understanding of what diabetes is, the effects, the treatments available and an overview of healthy eating.

Diabetes, Food and You:  This gives more detailed information on how different food & drinks impact on diabetes control, myths and facts surrounding diet and diabetes, food labelling loosing weight etc.

Diabetes, Insulin and You: This is designed to help those with Type 2 who have started on Insulin.  It covers what Insulin is, managing hypos, testing, driving , food and dose adjustment.

All the courses last about 2 1/2 to 3 hours, are led by either diabetes nurses or dietitians and are open to all with Type 2 diabetes.

Application forms should be available in surgeries or you can contact (email) the diabetes team direct on community.diabetesteam@glos-nhscare.nhs.uk or contact Mike Broome who can let you have an application form.