Chatham-Kent Health Alliance (CKHA) Diabetes Education Centre is expanding to include some much-needed new services.
"We know that instances of diabetes in Chatham-Kent are higher than the provincial average. So having a stable, accessible service is really important," said Caen Suni, Vice President of Clinical Programs and Operations at CKHA. "We have three physicians who have been part of this design to create a program to address various health needs that people with diabetes will require."
Suni explains that with up to "a quarter of our residents in Chatham-Kent" not having a physician, having services like this will help those with diabetes access the care they need.
This includes a monthly clinic run by Dr. Kamran Karatela, for patients with Type 2 Diabetes without a primary care provider, a clinic for expectant mothers with gestational diabetes provided by Dr. Simone Mendel, andendocrinologist Dr. Ibrahim Treki, who will work with patients with a broad range of diabetes-related conditions, especially the groups that often get missed.
"We want to make sure we are capturing those patients with reliable access to services," said Suni. "I think these three streams and these three physicians are going to help with the continuity of care in our community and make sure that access is continuous for this group who needs the care on going each and every day."
Patients who qualify for these services can be referred to the clinics by their family physician, local walk-in clinic, or through CKHA's emergency department and ambulatory care department.
For more information on the Diabetes education clinics click here.
