Education Empowers

Prevention Program Helps Those at Risk of Type 2 Diabetes

- Teresa Schiffer

DIABETES IS A PUBLIC health problem that many Americans struggle with. According to the American Diabetes Association, more than 30 million Americans have diabetes, or 9.4 percent of the population. About 7.2 million of those individuals have not even been diagnosed. It is the seventh leading cause of death in the U.S., with nearly 80,000 death certificates listing it as the underlying cause of death and another quarter million listing diabetes as a contributing factor.

It is thought that diabetes is underreported as a cause of death in many cases. Despite these grim statistics, local healthcare professionals are tackling the problem early by providing individuals at risk of developing diabetes with the knowledge and support to protect their health.

BayCare and Winter Haven Hospital have established the Diabetes Prevention Program to educate those at risk for diabetes in the lifestyle changes they need to make to preserve their health. The first class recently graduated, and the 2020 class will be starting soon. We talked to Tara Fleeman, an RN and certified diabetes educator who leads the classes, and Pat Miller, a graduate of the program, to learn more about how this innovative class is helping people take control of their health.