Specialized care for the diabetic heart

Deborah Heart and Lung Center recently established a Diabetic Heart and Vascular Disease Program, providing comprehensive preventive and treatment services to patients with, or at risk of, diabetes. The program’s dedicated team includes internists, cardiologists, vascular medicine and vascular surgery specialists, pharmacists, nutritionists and case managers who collaborate to provide thorough evaluations, in-depth patient education, risk-management programs and cutting-edge interventional and surgical procedures.

“Recent developments have shown that with aggressive efforts to reduce or eliminate risk factors, many complications from diabetes can be prevented, and the onset of the disease itself can be delayed,” says Augustine Agocha, M.D., Ph.D., Interim Director of the Diabetic Heart and Vascular Disease Program and Medical Director of Outpatient Services. “If we can manage risk factors, we’ll help patients slow progression of the disease and avoid unnecessary complications.”

Each patient entering the program receives a comprehensive initial health status screening to collect baseline health information as well as a personalized care plan. Extensive patient education from program specialists helps ensure participants understand treatment plans. A consultation with a registered dietitian and a self-care and health goal-setting education program are included.

Aspects of diabetic care not provided at Deborah, such as diabetic foot and eye care, are available in the Community Connection Network of preferred providers compiled to help patients find the best specialists in their area. These physicians see patients in their own offices, but work collaboratively with Deborah’s diabetes specialists to provide care for disease complications. Patients are referred on a case-by-case basis to the most conveniently located physician best able to treat them.

If you’d like to see a specialist in Deborah’s Diabetic Heart and Vascular Disease Program, call 1-800-555-1990.