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Too Sweet For Your Own Good II Presenters and Event Planners
Photo By: Central Health - Grenada
Back row: Dr. Alister Antoine-Vice President Grenada Diabetes Association, Dr. Albany Philip - Nephrologists, Roslyn A. Douglas, MA.,CC- Founder, Central Health-Grenada, Dr. Elliot Mc Guire – Opthalmologist. Front row: Nurse Rosalind Alexis - President Grenada Diabetes Association, Mrs. Annetta George - Public Relations Officer Perdmontemps Diabetic Group of St. David's Branch Grenada Diabetes Association and Mrs Catherine St. Bernard, President Perdmontemps Diabetic Group of the St. David's Branch Grenada Diabetes Association |
The
St. David's Branch of the Grenada Diabetes Association successfully hosted and
educated over 75 residents during its second annual mini symposium entitled, Too Sweet For Your Own Good II. Most
attendees were able to be there through a
sponsorship from Grenada Public Health Association. (GPHA).
GPHA
contributed $300 towards personalized bus services, allowing over 75 St.
David’s residents to attend the free programme at the Canal. These buses picked
up all interested residents from their homes, took them to the event, and
returned all safely at its conclusion.
As poor attendance to health programmes are largely due to lack of
access to transportation, GPHA wanted to stand in that gap, “One of GPHA's
mission is to advocate and promote optimal health of the society in a
sustainable manner. In order to achieve this mission, the GPHA will
continue to support initiatives, such as the one undertaken by the St. David's
branch of the GDA - to keep our nation informed and motivated to protect their
health.” said President of GPHA, Lindonne Glasgow.
Other supporters of the event included Hon. Oliver
Joseph, representative for the parish of St. David through his contacts at Aqua
Natural Limited provided water for the attendees. Bryden & Minors freely printed fliers
advertising the event, allowing Public Relation Officer Annetta George to post
it at strategic locations within St. David’s and distribute to churches and
schools. The Canal, the host site also
offered in-kind services. During the
event the Grenada Food and Nutrition Council displayed appropriate food portion
sizes on plates and examples of healthy foods for diabetes. Speakers and their
topics included Ophthalmologist Dr. Elliot Mc Guire - Diabetics & Eye Health, Nephrologist Dr. Alban Phillip - Monitor Your Kidneys and President of
the Grenada Medical Association (GMA) Dr. Francis Martin spoke on the topic Diabetic Sick Days: What To Do.
Within Dr. Phillip’s presentation he stated that all
diabetics should request from their doctor a kidney function test, especially
those who have difficulty controlling their glucose levels, “If you have
diabetes and your blood glucose, or blood sugar, levels are too high over time
this can damage your kidneys. Your kidneys clean your blood and if they are
damaged, waste and fluids build up in your blood instead of leaving your
body.”
The take home message from Dr. Mc Guire’s
presentation on Eye Heath is that as soon as person has been diagnosed with
diabetes, they should get a dilated eye examination. This will allow their eye specialist to
always compare those initial results with all subsequent ones. The dilated
examination allows eye specialists to see if the diabetic patient is developing
retinopathy, a complication of diabetes which results in blood vessels within
the retina to burst. Retinopathy can lead to obstruction of vision or
blindness.
The President of GMA, provided an interactive
session covering practical tips for patients on days they simply do not feel
well. Whether a diabetic has diarrhea, a cold, or some other health ailment,
Dr. Martin painstakingly stressed that the first thing a diabetic should do is
know their glucose number, “For me, the main objective was for them to
understand their illness and understand their disease. Know what feelings they
should and should not ignore. Some feelings you should take into consideration
others you just need to understand them. Simple things they can do to keep
themselves stable, most important of which is knowing your numbers. Whenever
anything goes wrong, check your numbers first.”
Too
Sweet For Your Own Good II was held on July 28, 2016 and was planned primarily
by the Perdmontemps Diabetic Group of
the St. David's Branch of GDA. The group meets every third Thursday at 3
pm, rotating location at the various health centres within the parish of St.
David’s, sharing tips, encouragement and support. They have begun planning events to recognize Diabetes Awareness Month and
World Diabetes Day during the month of November. The first confirmed event will be a church
service at the Westerhall New Testament Church, on Sunday November 13, 2016 at
10 am.
Article Written By: Roslyn A. Douglas, MA., CC. - Founder, Central Health - Grenada
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