Is diabetes training the missing link?

Do you have people with intellectual disability and diabetes come to their health appointments with a support worker? Ask the support workers Jayne Lehmann’s Top 5 Questions to assess disability care diabetes support. You may uncover the missing link as to why the person they support can’t get their blood glucose levels back to their target range!

The first thing to be aware of in regards to disability support workers is that they more than likely haven’t had any diabetes training. The disability certificate courses don’t include anything on diabetes care so if they support a person with diabetes then their organisation needs to arrange for some additional training so they know how to help them to eat healthier food, be more active, manage their stress and have their medication, if required.

Another fun fact … nurses are no longer working in most disability support services. The healthcare for the person they support must be written-up in a health support plan, which the support workers then follow to help their client manage their diabetes.

It is really important to find out about the knowledge and skills of the support workers helping people with a disability as their lack of diabetes training may well be why a person’s blood glucose levels have been difficult to bring back down. 

Ask the following questions to check the role and capacity of the support workers caring for a person with diabetes and intellectual disability.

Q. 1.  Does your client have a diabetes management plan to guide you and the other staff in looking after their diabetes? Who wrote it?
A written diabetes support plan needs to cover the different aspects of diabetes care and be written by a health professional in easy read language that is unambiguous and comprehensive.

Q. 2.  Have the support workers had diabetes training in the last year?
It is important for the knowledge and skills of support workers to be up-to-date and comprehensive enough to cover the lifestyle aspects of their diabetes, medication (if required), hypoglycaemia management, blood glucose monitoring, prevention and monitoring of associated health issues and insulin administration (if required).

Q. 3.  Does your organisation have diabetes policies and procedures to guide how you look after people with diabetes? Have you read them?
Policies and procedures will create the foundation of the diabetes care to be delivered. They will help support workers to understand how the organisation expects them to care for the person’s diabetes and the way they need to do this.

Q. 4.  Do you do the blood glucose monitoring for/with the person? Have you had your blood glucose monitoring knowledge and technique checked by a health professional?
Blood glucose monitoring education is important if it is to be done accurately, the numbers understood and any actions required when the levels are outside of the healthy zone understood. A way to document, review, understand and act on the levels is required.

Q. 5.  Who gives your client their insulin injection? 
Many people believe support workers cannot learn to legally give insulin injections. This isn’t true. If a disability support organisation puts in place policies, procedures, individual diabetes support plans
and quality diabetes training then they can give insulin injections. The training needs to be able to show staff how to care for the person’s diabetes and associated health issues, check and react to blood glucose levels, safely administer insulin, manage hypoglycaemia and have their knowledge and skills evaluated. 

Jayne Lehmann has created a flexible three Module training program for the specific needs of disability support workers. It will depend on the needs of the individual being supported as to the number of Modules to be completed. For example, those who are seeking a general update for their staff will do Module 1. If the support workers are involved with blood glucose monitoring support, add in Module 2. If they will be supporting or administratering insulin, add in Module 3.

Module 1 – Overview of Diabetes Care
Module 2 – Blood Glucose Monitoring
Module 3 – Insulin administration and support

Plus an online video session is included with Jayne Lehmann. this provides the opportunity to check the support workers use of the blood glucose meter and insulin device. The participants also get a chance to ask questions about the needs of their client, for a more tailored approach to the application of the information covered.

If you see people with intellectual disability who are supported by support workers, tell them about the Diabetes Care in the Community Program.

Click on the link and download the course information to find out what is covered in the course. Giving support workers an update can make a big difference in the diabetes management of people with intellectual or psychosocial disability!