In commemoration of World Diabetes Day, which was observed on November 14th, the Georgetown D’Urban Park Lions Club has launched a social support group for people living with diabetes.
The initiative is one of the outcomes of a Memorandum of Understanding that was signed last year on the occasion of Lion’s Day between the Lions Club International and the International Diabetes Federation in order to establish a cooperative alliance to help prevent diabetes and to improve the quality of life of those living with diabetes.
A study by the American Journal of Managed Care as shared by member of the local club’s Health and Service Commit-tee Dr Holly Alexander says that practical social support is consistently associated with higher medication adherence along with information support which includes recommendations, advice and information used by the person with diabetes. In addition to these supports, social groups also provide evaluative support, where members equipped with useful information would do self-assessments.
Further literature shows that social support affects the control of diabetes through two processes: direct effect of social support through behaviours related to health such as encouraging healthy lifestyles; and through the moderating effect of social support on acute and chronic nervous pressure on health as a result of diabetes.
“It is important that we understand where we are, in this community as it regards the prevalence of diabetes and so the club will seek to establish a database which will capture the status of diabetes in this community by age, gender, ethnicity…. This information will be shared with the Presidential National Non Communi-cable Disease Commission, with which the Lions Club of Georgetown D’Urban Park is partnering for his project, the Chronic Disease Unit of the [Ministry of Public Health], and of course the Guyana Diabetic Association,” Dr Alexander stated.
“Further, the plan is to organise clinic sessions to diagnose persons with diabetes and pre-diabetes. Clinics will be conducted in collaboration with the Presidential National Non Communicable Disease Commission at churches, supermarkets, and other meeting places in the area. Also in the plan is to implement client-centered activities and please note that permission has already been given to use a part of the community ground on High Palm Road to upgrade a walking trail, to establish an agriculture plot where there will be focus on healthy foods, to build a small benab for nutritional education, taking of vital signs and sharing experiences and maybe even do aerobics sessions,” Dr. Alexander added.
The group caters for those with diabetes living in the communities of Lodge, Tucville, East and North East La Penitence, Guyhoc and Festival City.
In order to become a member, a person should be a diabetic and will be eligible to attend any of the meetings held on the second Thursday of every month from 5 pm to 6pm. Their next meeting is scheduled for December 12th at their regular meeting spot, the Georgetown Lions Club of D’Urban Park’s Den, at 1888 Blue Mountain Road, North Ruimveldt, opposite Food for the Poor.
The Lions Clubs International (LCI) is the world’s largest service club organisation with 48,000 clubs and over 1.4 million members serving in 200 countries, including Guyana.
