“The great aim of education is action not knowledge” It is clear that there is an urgent need for a change in the way many healthcare professionals and patients think and act towards achieving good glycaemic control in type 2 diabetes. This has been a key topic of conversation in recent years among healthcare professionals. Discourse needs to give way to action and measurably improved outcomes. Changing Diabetes – Improve Control was established as a global public awareness initiative designed to promote the importance of glycaemic control in type 2 diabetes management and ultimately drive a change in clinical practice. The main output of the Improve Control initiative is the Improve Control Education Toolkit, which provides practical solutions to address the issue of poor glycaemic control and improve clinical practice. Global Task Force on Glycaemic Control “Together we are committed to act and, ultimately, implement practical solutions to this problem [of poor glycaemic control] in order to improve the future for patients with diabetes worldwide” The GTF members The Global Task Force (GTF) on Glycaemic Control was established in 2006 and is comprised of 14 diabetes specialists from around the world. In recognition of the diabetes pandemic, the GTF have signed the ‘Commitment to Act’, a formal pledge to take action to address the escalating problem of poor glycaemic control among people with type 2 diabetes. GTF members Canada: Dr Wendy Rosenthall Dr Vincent Woo China: Prof Wenying Yang Dr Pan Chang Yu India: Dr Ashok Kumar Das Dr Choodappa Setty Munichoodappa Poland: Dr Teresa Koblik Dr Bogumil Wolnik Russia: Prof Marina Shestakova Sweden: Dr Kerstin Berntorp Turkey: Prof Sema Akalin Prof M Temel Yilmaz UK: Prof Eric S Kilpatrick (chair) Prof Antonio Ceriello The GTF identified a need to promote education among diabetes teams. As such, in collaboration with Novo Nordisk, the GTF developed the Improve Control Education Toolkit as one potential solution to addressing the issue of poor glycaemic control. The Toolkit provides healthcare professionals with the latest information, tools and skills to educate themselves and their colleagues about glycaemic control and the practical real-world solutions to the growing problem of poor glycaemic control.
“It does take effort and time to truly see and understand the difficulty of living with diabetes from the patient’s perspective, but it doesn’t take much time to discover that this understanding can really lead to all sorts of remarkable changes.” Professor William Polonsky, Behavioural Diabetes Institute, expert trainer The Improve Control initiative identified a need to enhance the information and educational tools available to diabetes teams. As a result, the Improve Control Education Toolkit was developed to support small changes in clinical practice that can make big differences in the lives of patients across the globe. The Toolkit brings together information on the latest treatment strategies, with education on effective patient-professional communication. The Education Toolkit consists of three modules covering key areas of need for healthcare professionals treating type 2 diabetes. Each module includes:
“The idea is that we’ve got 30 diabetes specialists from 9 different countries, learning new skills, new tools to take back to their countries in order to improve glycaemic control.” Professor Eric Kilpatrick, Chairperson of the GTF Watch videos from the first international Improve Control Education Workshop held in Rome, Italy on September 5, 2008 and led by world-renowned experts in the field of diabetes.
The motivational interviewing podcast is a supplement to Module 2 of the Improve Control Education Toolkit. Motivational interviewing is a directive, patient-centred style of counseling, which can promote changes in patient behaviour by helping to explore and overcome patients’ ambivalence to improving glycaemic control. The motivational interviewing podcast, led by Professor William H. Polonsky, one of the world’s leaders in this area, provides an introduction to the concepts and tools of motivational interviewing, as well as real-life patient consultations demonstrating motivational interviewing techniques in use.