Luxembourg's Ministry of Health and ALD, the Luxembourg diabetes association, have announced a digital campaign for this year's World Diabetes Day (14 November).
On the occasion of the International Year of the Nurse and Midwife, the International Diabetes Federation (IDF) has dedicated World Diabetes Day 2020 to the promotion of the role of nurses in the diagnosis, management and prevention of diabetes. The COVID-19 pandemic has put a strain on the health professions and further demonstrated how essential recognition of this profession is at the global level.
Diabetes is a chronic disease that affects over 463 million adults worldwide, including over 30,000 people in Luxembourg. Living with diabetes, whether type 1 or type 2, does not increase one's risk of contracting COVID-19. However, some diabetics are at an increased risk of developing a severe form of the virus, which may require hospitalisation or intensive care and could even lead to death.
Luxembourg's Minister of Health, Paulette Lenert, stressed: “Adequate control of diabetes and its complications is particularly important in these times of pandemic and we must do everything to guarantee continued qualitative care for our patients!”.
Nurses play an essential role in the identification and diagnosis of diabetes at an early stage, acting on risk factors for type 2 diabetes and providing self-management training and psychological support to prevent complications related to diabetes. In Luxembourg, it is mainly nurses responsible for general care with training and expertise in diabetology who have an essential place in the monitoring and support of people with diabetes. Diabetes education nurses work in the country's four hospitals, at the Maison du diabète and in certain care home networks and are grouped together in INFEDIAB, the Luxembourg group of nurses for diabetes education, which is affiliated with SLD, the Luxembourg diabetology association.
With the aim of helping to improve and standardise the quality of care provided to people with diabetes in Luxembourg, the Scientific Council published recommendations in 2019 on the management of diabetes in Luxembourg. These recommendations, inspired by international guidelines adapted to the national context, provide an important place for the therapeutic education of patients. The recruitment and training of specialised nursing staff is therefore considered essential for the years to come.
Minister Paulette Lenert explained: “For a doctor, adopting national recommendations means offering each of his patients a level of quality of care that is fair and recognised by his / her peers. It is also facilitating the coordination of care between professionals who all apply the same principles. I therefore invite all health professionals to consult this essential tool".
Simplified versions of the recommendations will also be developed for patients and the public, with the aim of supporting patient education and the implementation of recommendations.
Following the restrictions linked to the COVID-19 pandemic, no public awareness actions or conferences are planned for this year's World Diabetes Day. Instead, a digital campaign to raise awareness of the risks associated with diabetes, based on a video animation produced by the Scientific Council, will be launched on various websites and social networks.
In addition, the traditional “10,000 steps against diabetes” solidarity walk, organised by ALD in collaboration with the FLMP walking club, will take place virtually on the weekend of 14-15 November 2020.
For further information, visit www.ald.lu or facebook.com/aldiabete.
