The Dubai Diabetes Centre, a specialised multi-disciplinary diabetes care and management centre of Dubai Health Authority, recently trained school nurses from the Dubai Education Zone on diabetes management and care.

The joint initiative which was undertaken in partnership with the Ministry of Health and Johnson and Johnson Company, took place at Al Baraha Hospital and more than 100 nurses took part in the training programme.

Dr M Hamed Farooqi, director of the Dubai Diabetes Center Dubai, said: “Appropriate diabetes care in the school and day-care setting is necessary for the child's immediate safety, long-term well-being, and optimal academic performance.”
“School nurses play a vital role in coordinating and providing diabetes care at school. We provided training for these nurses so that they understand the disease, its complications and most importantly learn about ways to manage the disease, especially during an emergency situation.

“Diabetics can experience fluctuations in their blood sugar level, for example, they may face hyperglycemia, which means chronically high blood glucose levels or hypoglycemia, which is chronically low blood sugar levels. Both these situations are critical and therefore it is essential that in addition to the doctors, nurses also understand ways to manage such an emergency situation so that they can assist in providing appropriate care for diabetics.”

Abdulla Mohamed Juma, director of Administrative Affairs at the Dubai Diabetes Center, said: “This training is part of our corporate social reasonability (CSR) activities. This is the first phase, in the next phase we will educate nurses in the private sector as well as teachers in Dubai, so that more people within the school environment are aware of the basics in diabetes management.”

Inaam Ibrahim Kandil, lead diabetes educator at the Dubai Diabetes Center, said: “Diabetes education is an important tool and within the school environment, it is particularly crucial, because children spend several hours of their days in schools. While schools are equipped with medical staff and nurses, educating them through such programs helps ensure they are up-to-date with the latest treatment methods.” – TradeArabia News Service