MEDIA RELEASE
March 24, 2009

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE:

Allison Clark, Executive Director
ACTION Health
Phone: (570) 275-9150
allisondclark@verizon.net

ACTION Health announces free educational program and research study on diabetes to be held at the Shamokin Area Community Hospital cafeteria

March 24 is American Diabetes Alert Day, program begins April 8 at 1:30 p.m.

COAL TOWNSHIP (March 24) – ACTION Health, Bloomsburg University and Shamokin Area Community Hospital are partnering to provide a free educational program to the community for people with diabetes and their family caregivers. An associated research study focusing on uncertainty in illness is being conducted in order to improve diabetes education to better help those affected.

The educational series titled ‘Achieving Wellness while meeting the challenges of Diabetes’ begins on April 8 at 1:30 p.m., with guest speaker Joan F. Miller, CRNP, PhD of Bloomsburg University. The purpose of the classes is to help people manage their diabetes.

“Diabetes is a prominent issue for residents in the Central Susquehanna River Valley,” said Allison Clark, executive director of ACTION Health. “Educational programs like the one being offered in Shamokin enable people diagnosed with diabetes to take back control of their lives.”

Anyone interested in attending the program is asked to call Kelley Morrison, education coordinator, at Shamokin Area Community Hospital at (570) 644-4274 to register. The series of two-hour classes that begins on Wednesday, April 8 at 1:30 p.m., will continue each Wednesday until April 29.

Many people diagnosed with diabetes struggle to cope with the disease because they are unable to link an illness-related event to their everyday experiences and choices. Individuals who are uncertain about the causes and effects of diabetes are more likely to have trouble accepting a change in lifestyle or professional treatment and advice. The program is designed to reduce this uncertainty and empower individuals and their caregivers to achieve wellness while dealing with the chronic illness.

March 24 has been designated American Diabetes Alert Day by the American Diabetes Association. The day is to serve as a ‘wake-up call’ for the American public on the seriousness of diabetes.

According to the American Diabetes Association, there are 23.6 million people in the United States diagnosed with diabetes, with an additional 5.7 million who are unaware that they have the disease.  Over 1.1 million people in Pennsylvania alone are living with diabetes. Local diabetes educator and nurse practitioner Karen Kepner has dubbed the area as ‘the pierogie belt’ due to the high number of instances of diabetes in order to draw attention to the increased need for diabetes education locally.

ACTION Health has been conducting educational programs on diabetes in local communities since the spring of 2002. In October of 2008, 31 persons successfully participated in a well-received series on diabetes in Berwick.

Schedule: 

–April 8, 1:30 p.m. to 3:30 p.m.
–April 15, 1:30 p.m. to 3:30 p.m.
–April 22, 1:30 p.m. to 3:30 p.m.
–April 29, 1:30 p.m. to 3:30 p.m.

About ACTION Health 

ACTION Health is a collaborative partnership in the Central Susquehanna River Valley that provides community health outreach and education. ACTION Health strives to be the recognized leader in providing quality, innovative, easily accessible health programs focused on enhancing community services and developing new initiatives to address unmet health and wellness needs. It is divided into six separate task forces, comprised of volunteers and agency partners, each focusing on a specific health need or population. ACTION Health is also the designated SHIP (State Health Improvement Plan) partner for the five service counties of Columbia, Montour, Northumberland, Snyder and Union Counties, working collaboratively with over 65 agencies to meet the unmet health needs and improve the health status of the people in our communities.

The Community Wellness Task Force’s mission is to provide awareness, education and community outreach activities promoting safe and healthy living to residents and organizations in Columbia, Montour, Northumberland, Snyder and Union counties.

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