Date:11/07/2007 URL: http://www.thehindu.com/2007/07/11/stories/2007071159950400.htm

Tamil Nadu - Coimbatore

Diabetes outreach programme

Special Correspondent

— PHOTO: S. SIVA SARAVANAN

Mobile clinic: Community Diabetes Bus Service operated by Coimbatore Diabetes Foundation.

COIMBATORE: Coimbatore Diabetes Foundation has said that its outreach programme to treat and generate awareness on diabetes both in urban and rural areas is gaining recognition overseas.

The programme was showcased at a meet organised by the American Diabetes Association on June 22 at Chicago in the U.S., diabetologist and foundation head V. Sekar told presspersons here.

“We provide orientation to doctors in the rural areas on detecting and treating diabetes and also providing the right kind of counselling to patients on diet and exercise,” Dr. Sekar said.

“The mobile clinic, operated as Community Diabetes Bus Service, might get international recognition as even the European Diabetes Association want this and the overall programme to be present at a conference sometime later in Amsterdam,” he said.

The bus had all diagnostic facilities to check the blood sugar level and also provide counselling.

Diabetes was a big issue across the world. Efforts must be made to control diabetes as it could lead to a host of other problems affecting various organs such as eyes, heart and kidney.

Detection and control of the disease was not done on time. The lack of awareness, time, resources and doctors were the main reasons.

As the lack of awareness hampered timely detection and treatment, the foundation had decided to the go to the people instead of waiting for the cases to come when these reached difficult stages.

With “service at the door step” as the basic approach, the programme also includes periodical follow-up, either in the form of personal visits or camps, or patient-foundation interaction through letters or e-mail.