The National Health Insurance Company, Daman, recently organized two specialized sessions, one in the morning and the other in the evening, for its members at the Abu Dhabi Officers Club titled 'Managing diabetes during the Holy Month of Ramadan.' They were held to inform those individuals who suffer from diabetes on how best they can enjoy the holy month of Ramadan whilst successfully managing their disease. The trained medical staff, including doctors, dentists, pharmacists, nurses and nutritionists, who led the seminar provided participants with useful information via a question and answer session using interactive educational tools on how they can adopt healthy eating habits throughout Ramadan.
The session was attended by some of Daman members who are currently living with type 2 diabetes. It was steered by the Daman's Disease Management (Sanadak) team, as an initiative that is part of the Sanadak program launched in 2009. Sanadak aims to help patients with chronic conditions such as diabetes, obesity and various other ailments, providing self management practices supervised by trained Sanadak professionals.
The event was a dynamic learning experience, as the trainers used conversation maps which covered diabetes-related topics such as: an overview on diabetes, diabetes and healthy eating, blood glucose and monitoring, and the natural cause of diabetes. Participants living with or who are at risk for this chronic condition shared their personal successes and struggles, and also had a useful question and answer session with the health facilitator. At the end of the seminar, participants had created realistic goals for themselves using what they had just learnt so that they could better enjoy Ramadan with their families.
Dr. Alfons Grabosch, Disease Management Program Manager at Daman commented: "At Daman we are always keen for our members to adopt healthy lifestyles and to have a positive outlook on life. Timely events such as this one will give them the chance to enjoy the food in Ramadan, spiritual activities and social gatherings whilst managing their diabetes."
Mr. Ahmed Mousa Al Hammadi, a session participant said: "I was glad to discover how I could enjoy Ramadan without worrying about how my health could suffer. This seminar has enlightened me on how to be healthy whilst enjoying this special month with my family and friends."
Another participant, Mr. Saleh Saeed Alamoudi said: "I found the conversation maps particularly exciting as they gave me an insight on how to adopt healthy eating habits. What I've learnt from this session will not only benefit me as a diabetic patient, but also will benefit my family whom I want to protect from getting this disease in the future."
At the end of the session, a meal that was prepared to represent the recommended portions of different types of food was provided to all participants.
