Maui Health is excited to announce the 5th Annual Diabetes Awareness Event – a community health fair to celebrate World Diabetes Day – on Thursday, November 14, 2019, from 4 to 6:30 p.m. at Maui Memorial Medical Center. The free event will include informational booths, entertainment, prizes and feature guest speakers from the Maui medical community lending their expertise on diabetes prevention and management.
Event schedule is as follows:
4 to 5 p.m. Maui Memorial Medical Center Courtyard
* Informational booths featuring various health and wellness organizations
* Entertainment
* Complimentary refreshments
* Enter-to-win prize drawings
5 to 6:30 p.m. Maui Memorial Medical Center Auditorium
Guest speakers:
* Dr. Joshua Farrell-Starbuck, MD, Hospitalist
* Dr. Robert Connaughton, MD, Vascular & General Surgeon
* Andrea DeRoode, RD, Clinical Dietitian
* Seth Abdullah, Y-DPP Director, YMCA
* Patient Testimonials
Complimentary valet parking will also be offered. The event is free and open to the public.
According to the Hawaii Department of Health, in Hawaii, 442,000 adults have prediabetes, and two in three of these adults don’t know that they have it. Without intervention, 15% to 30% of those with prediabetes will develop type 2 diabetes within five years. Fortunately, prediabetes can be reversed, meaning that if you have it, there are things that you can do to prevent yourself from getting type 2 diabetes.
“Many of my patients tell me that ‘they wished they had known more about prediabetes’ before they were diagnosed with type 2 diabetes,” said Jolly Uclaray, Maui Memorial Medical Center diabetes educator. “So we work really hard to provide as much education as possible around ways to prevent diabetes, as well as ways to reverse prediabetes. Events like this, with the organizations that participate, are vital to the short- and long-term health of our community.”
In addition to the annual community event, Maui Health System also offers free monthly classes that are open to the public. The Diabetes Support Group meets on the second Wednesday of every month at 5 p.m. at Maui Memorial Medical Center. The class provides education, skills, and other resources to diabetes patients and their families. Each meeting focuses on a different topic and special guest speakers provide specialized expertise on daily management and ways to prevent diabetes. For more information on Diabetes Support Group, visit the Maui Memorial Medical Center Facebook page<https://www.facebook.com/
