Diabetes on a Budget | Food Insecurity
Do you want to learn how to support your patients who face food insecurity? Are you overwhelmed with the increasing number of people who don’t have access to food? Well, Kimberly Kraus and Ashley Klees want to share with you their own experiences and expertise with you. In response to this crisis, Kimberly and Ashley have partnered with the Oregon Food Bank to implement a screening tool in their clinic and empower their colleagues to support their patients and provide them with resources.
When you attend this session, you will be able to:
- Define food insecurity and discuss the impact on participants living with diabetes and/or chronic health conditions.
- Learn how to use a food insecurity screening tool.
- Identify local services and resources available to address food insecurity.
- Learn innovative ways clinics can screen for food insecurity, refer to local resources, and follow up to ensure barriers are not inhibiting use of resources.
- Describe appropriate and supportive language for use when communicating with patients about food insecurity.
Kimberly Kraus MSW LCSW
Ms. Kraus has worked as a licensed clinical social worker for twenty years in a variety of clinical settings, including outpatient, day treatment, and school-based and hospital programs. Her focus has always been working with children, teens, and their families to increase positive coping. Ms. Kraus is interested in providing ongoing support and resource information for families managing type 1 and type 2 diabetes. Outside of work, she enjoys spending time with her family, kids, and friends. She also has fun walking her dog, jogging, and reading.
Ashley Klees RD CDE
An Oregon native, Ms. Klees graduated from Oregon State University and completed her Dietetic Internship at OHSU where she focused her community work on combating food insecurity. At OHSU, she has the honor of working with patients who struggle to put enough food on their table, and she has seen first-hand the negative financial impact of diabetes. As ADA Education Program Coordinator, she works alongside Kimberly Kraus, LCSW, to create and implement programs for patients with diabetes, which includes providing OHSU meal cards, healthy Chili Meal Kits and food pantry staples, healthy eating-on-a-budget cooking demonstration classes, and food insecurity screening processes.