New Brunswick launches three-year diabetes research study
Diabetes is the seventh leading cause of death in Canada.
Close to 50,000 New Brunswickers have it and a third of them don’t even know about it.
It’s a global epidemic and getting worse by the minute, but New Brunswick’s Department of Health is taking steps to rein in this disease.
Last week Health Minister Mike Murphy announced a three-year research project to help combat the disease.
"Diabetes is a major health issue in Canada and around the world," Murphy said.
"The cost to the Canadian health care system is estimated at $9 billion a year and it's expected to rise as more people are diagnosed with diabetes. The overall incidence of diabetes in Canada and worldwide is expected to double by 2030.”
The project is intended to improve the care of patients with Type 2 diabetes and involves giving doctors tools to better manage the care of patients with the disease.
The annoucement of this study almost coincided with last week’s publication of a Conference Board of Canada study naming Canada as number 10 out of 16 countries for the quality of our health and health services. That’s way down from a fifth place finish we achieved in the 1990s.
The researchers indicated Canada could fall even farther down the list if it doesn’t start taking serious steps to address chronic diseases like diabetes.
The research project will be led by Dr. Christine Pippy, a Saint John-based nephrologist, which is a two-dollar word for a kidney specialist.
"Our goals are to slow, halt and even prevent progression of this disease and its complications such as heart disease and kidney disease," Pippy said.
A software program will be used to collect patient information from 40 doctors and make recommendations for care. The doctors will also have the option to send patients to a rapid referral clinic in Saint John where they'll have access to specialist physicians, pharmacists, nurses, social workers and dietitians.
"Patients will have access to that clinic in roughly about six weeks from referral, which is greatly reducing standard wait times to see a sub-specialist," Pippy said.
With the rapid increase in cases of diabetes, the health care system must come up with new ways to address the disease, she said.
"In Canada the driving forces for this epidemic are an aging population, increasing sedentary lifestyles which obviously leads to increasing obesity rates, and as a parent, the most sobering is the growing incidence of this disease in children.
"We now know that for the over two million Canadians who suffer from this disease, that their life expectancy is shortened by five to 10 years," said Pippy.
I’m glad to know our little province is doing its part to prevent and treat this disease.
Close to 50,000 New Brunswickers have it and a third of them don’t even know about it.
It’s a global epidemic and getting worse by the minute, but New Brunswick’s Department of Health is taking steps to rein in this disease.
Last week Health Minister Mike Murphy announced a three-year research project to help combat the disease.
"Diabetes is a major health issue in Canada and around the world," Murphy said.
"The cost to the Canadian health care system is estimated at $9 billion a year and it's expected to rise as more people are diagnosed with diabetes. The overall incidence of diabetes in Canada and worldwide is expected to double by 2030.”
The project is intended to improve the care of patients with Type 2 diabetes and involves giving doctors tools to better manage the care of patients with the disease.
The annoucement of this study almost coincided with last week’s publication of a Conference Board of Canada study naming Canada as number 10 out of 16 countries for the quality of our health and health services. That’s way down from a fifth place finish we achieved in the 1990s.
The researchers indicated Canada could fall even farther down the list if it doesn’t start taking serious steps to address chronic diseases like diabetes.
The research project will be led by Dr. Christine Pippy, a Saint John-based nephrologist, which is a two-dollar word for a kidney specialist.
"Our goals are to slow, halt and even prevent progression of this disease and its complications such as heart disease and kidney disease," Pippy said.
A software program will be used to collect patient information from 40 doctors and make recommendations for care. The doctors will also have the option to send patients to a rapid referral clinic in Saint John where they'll have access to specialist physicians, pharmacists, nurses, social workers and dietitians.
"Patients will have access to that clinic in roughly about six weeks from referral, which is greatly reducing standard wait times to see a sub-specialist," Pippy said.
With the rapid increase in cases of diabetes, the health care system must come up with new ways to address the disease, she said.
"In Canada the driving forces for this epidemic are an aging population, increasing sedentary lifestyles which obviously leads to increasing obesity rates, and as a parent, the most sobering is the growing incidence of this disease in children.
"We now know that for the over two million Canadians who suffer from this disease, that their life expectancy is shortened by five to 10 years," said Pippy.
I’m glad to know our little province is doing its part to prevent and treat this disease.
posted by Street Wise Guy | 7:16 AM
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