London - The National Diabetes Management Strategy has received a $500,000 boost in funding from Novo Nordisk Canada Inc. to research diabetes treatment in primary care and ultimately improve the lives of people with the disease. The Strategy is a joint initiative of The University of Western Ontario (Western) and the Canadian Diabetes Association, led by Dr. Stewart Harris, the Canadian Diabetes Association Chair in Diabetes Management at Western’s Schulich School of Medicine & Dentistry.

“As a clinician/researcher in family medicine and diabetes, I know there are many challenges involved in treating diabetes in an extremely busy primary care setting,” says Dr. Harris. “This funding from Novo Nordisk will support our efforts to define the problems and gaps in the prevention and treatment of diabetes and help identify solutions to improve the care of people with diabetes.”

The new funding from Novo Nordisk will target at least two key aspects of the Strategy that focus on primary care. The first involves evaluating the care and challenges family practices face in implementing the Canadian Diabetes Association 2008 Clinical Practice Guidelines for the Prevention and Management of Diabetes in Canada, while the second will focus on physician and allied health professional education.

Diabetes in the Family Practice Setting
With more than two million Canadians diagnosed with diabetes, healthcare professionals in the family practice setting are caring for the vast majority of patients. In fact, people with type 2 diabetes visit their family physician approximately nine times a year, and about two-thirds of these visits are for diabetes management, creating a tremendous toll on the health care system.

“As a leading diabetes company in Canada we are extremely proud to support the National Diabetes Management Strategy and the tools it will provide to healthcare professionals, particularly in the family practice setting,” says Vince Lamanna, President, Novo Nordisk Canada Inc. “The human cost of the disease is tremendous including blindness, heart disease, kidney problems and nerve damage. Supporting the Strategy offers us a meaningful opportunity to help more family doctors better manage diabetes earlier to prevent serious complications.”

As the Chair, Dr. Harris is committed to improving the health outcomes of people with diabetes by developing and evaluating evidence-based models of disease management that reflect the complex continuum of care that is usually centred in primary care settings. In fact, Dr. Harris’ research indicates that while Canadian family physicians are doing a majority of the diabetes management, they are not comfortable in managing all medications (such as insulin) aggressively enough to help their patients reach their glycemic targets. , This care gap, in turn, may contribute to increasing long-term risk for diabetes related morbidities.

"While we've seen tremendous strides in preventive approaches and treatments for people with diabetes, the epidemic continues to broaden and deepen," says Ellen Malcolmson, President and CEO, Canadian Diabetes Association. "With support from our partners, like this donation for the Strategy, we can help arm primary healthcare physicians and allied health professionals with new information and tools they need to help reverse the epidemic, ultimately benefiting the millions of Canadians impacted by this disease."

Dr. Stewart Harris is a Professor in Family Medicine, Epidemiology and Biostatistics, and Endocrinology at Western’s Schulich School of Medicine & Dentistry. He also holds the Ian McWhinney Chair in Family Medicine Studies and is a scientist at the Lawson Health Research Institute. The University of Western Ontario is a leader in diabetes research – a strength that dates back to 1921 when Sir Frederick Banting was an instructor at the university.