Editors Column
Introduction
In our first edition of the ADE for 2021 we have articles covering a wide variety of topics relevant to our work as diabetes educators.
Marian Brennan and colleagues from Curtin University discuss their research looking at the role of behaviour changes theories to address fear of hypoglycaemia as a barrier to physical activity in type 1 diabetes. Marian is one of the 2019 recipients of an ADEA Diabetes Research Foundation research fellowships.
Michelle Robins, CDE and Nurse Practitioner at Northern Health in Victoria has written a timely article on diabetes management during Ramadan, with practical tips for CDEs working with clients who choose to fast during Ramadan.
Michelle has also provided an important article on DKA in type 2 diabetes. While there is increased awareness of the risks with use of SGLT2i, Michelle also discusses other factors that can increase the risk of a person with type 2 diabetes developing DKA.
Particularly relevant to those who are continuing to provide telehealth services, but also to anyone working with clients using pumps and CGM, Amy Rush, Accredited Practicing Dietitian and Credentialled Diabetes Educator at the Type 1 Diabetes Family Centre in WA, gives us an overview of the various data sharing platforms which enable people with diabetes to share their pump and glucose monitoring data with health professionals, including her personal insight into which features of these platforms she finds most helpful.
Bodil Rasmussen and colleagues present their research on developing a website for breastfeeding women with diabetes, which has resulted in a website designed with the input of both women with diabetes and health professionals.
Do your clients ask you about blood donation? ADEA Professional Services and Education Manager Rachel Freeman answers the question: can people with diabetes donate blood? In most cases, the answer is yes, but there are some important considerations and contraindications that diabetes educators should be aware of.
If you haven’t already seen and started using the new sick day management resources, Rachel also provides an overview of the health professional guidelines and consumer resources which underwent a major review and update last year. They are all now available for download from the ADEA website.
As we plan future editions of the ADE, we would like to encourage more of our members to consider submitting an article for publication. Remember, it doesn’t need to be original research. Do you have an interesting case study? A quality improvement project you’ve conducted in your workplace? Have you conducted a literature review on a particular clinical area for your own continuing professional development that you would be willing to share with others? Do you have a practice tool you’ve developed or used that others could use? All of these may be suitable for publication. If you have an idea you would like to discuss further, please feel free to get in touch – you can email me at editor@adea.com.au
Conclusion
A reminder that you can read the ADE via https://ade.adea.com.au on any digital device and can also print, share and comment on articles as well as being able to browse or search for past articles. If you prefer to read offline, you can print any articles, either in hard copy or as a PDF which you can save and read later. You can find instructions on how to do this here https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Df9-L_7QvqE
Acknowledgements
Once again I’d like to thank our hard-working EAG, and our authors, for helping to bring this edition together. We hope you enjoy reading it and welcome your feedback.