It has already been over a month since AADE 18! It was an amazing meeting with great sessions discussing hot topics and of course wonderful networking.
I enjoyed many of the sessions, but several that stood out to me were Friday’s general session and the microbiome session, Saturday’s discussion regarding engaging family and friends, and Sunday’s session discussing medications on the horizon. Sunday nights 70’s party was AMAZING!
Dr. Gabby provided attendees some great references and ideas regarding care management and population management. I left the session with lots of ideas of how to work better with my patient-aligned care team (PACT, the VA’s PCMH model) to ensure we are reaching patients with diabetes that are not reaching certain goals or may need additional care and the overall idea that we need to start working on treating the population of patients versus one patient at a time.
Dr. Segal presented his research regarding a patient’s microbiome and its effect on disease states such as diabetes. I found his discussion regarding artificial sweeteners altering the gut microbiome in negative ways leading to glucose intolerance interesting, along with the data presented regarding diets potentially needing to be tailored to each patient due to different post-prandial glucose responses (PPGR) with consumption of the same foods. Though this area needs more research I find it fascinating and thought provoking.
On Saturday we heard from several speakers regarding the need to engaged and include a patient’s family, friends, and others in care, but to ensure the “blame and shame” phenomenon is avoiding. It was enlightening to hear from several speakers who have personally dealt with these issues and how to be more supportive to patients and family members with diabetes. Additionally, gaps in research regarding support and barriers to support are lacking in several areas, including T2DM in children and adolescents. Speakers discussed support strategies and tools such as group videoconferencing for educational classes, shared medical appointments, camps, and ensuring family education and support.
As a pharmacist, Sunday’s discussion regarding mediations on the horizon was very interesting. An oral medication for T1DM?! Sign me up! In all seriousness though, an oral agent seeking approval for T1DM is ground breaking. Sotagliflozin, which is an SGLT-2/1 inhibitor was submitted for approval recently and all medications come with side effects, in the right patient this is very exciting. Additionally, an oral GLP-1!! Things just keep getting better! Yes, medications excite me, which means I picked the right career. Take a look at Dr. Bzowyckyj and Dr. Isaacs’ slides that can still be found on the annual meeting website, along with the other slide sets.
Everyone had a blast at the 70’s party and I’m hoping next year we keep the tradition going and maybe throw it back to the 80’s! J
Lastly, do not forget to claim your CE by October 5th, 2018!!! It has already been a month since the meeting and we know the next month will fly by too.
Looking for additional CE and networking opportunities? Don’t miss the Diabetes Care 'Show-Me' (Education) Summit 2018 set for Saturday, October 20, 2018 at UMKC School of Pharmacy. This Program is awarded 6.5 Continuing Education contact hours for the ANCC, the CDR, and the ACPE.
Topics include: Cardiovascular Disease in Diabetes; Update on Diabetes/Retinopathy; SGLT-2 Inhibitors & Patient Education; Nutrition Panel: Nutrition in Special Populations: Cystic Fibrosis, Gastroparesis, Oncology Patients, Vigorous exercise in Type 1 Diabetes Patients; Pre/Post Bariatric Surgery for the Person with Diabetes; and The Building Blocks of Telehealth.
Registration on-line today at: http://www.myaadenetwork.org/p/cm/ld/fid=6323