When you think of epidemic, you may think flu. But think again.
On Feb. 9, 2010, the World Health Organization declared diabetes a global epidemic.
According to the International Diabetes Federation, there were 366 million people worldwide with diabetes in 2011; that number is expected to increase to 552 million by 2030. Further, there are three new cases of diabetes every 10 seconds.
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“Diabetes is the single most important chronic disease that will come across your desk,” said Dr. Alain Sotto, occupational medical consultant for the TTC and director of Medcan Wellness Clinic, speaking at the Accompass Managing Chronic Illnesses in Your Workplace event Thursday in Toronto.
The stats back it up.
In 2007, 25% of the Canadian population was considered obese and cost $2.5 billion in indirect healthcare costs. “Childhood obesity leads to adult obesity, diabetes, heart disease and hypertension,” he said.
In 2009, the economic burden for Canada was $12.2 billion and is expected to rise to $17 billion in 2020.
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The employer role
An aging population and rising obesity rates definitely contribute to the disease, said Sotto. “The longer you live, the higher the risk of having chronic disease.”
But employers can help. While they can’t do much about aging Canadians, they can help implement screening and preventative programs.
There’s no better place for a captive audience than in the workplace, Sotto said. “You have [employees] for at least eight hours a day.”
According to this year’s Sanofi Canada Healthcare Survey, 69% of workers agreed their employer should be doing more. And 61% of workers told their manager they had diabetes, versus 66% for cancer.
Many employers are involved in diabetes screening (i.e., the A1C blood test).
AstraZeneca has developed a six-month pilot program called motivaction.
The pilot will include pre-screening, on-site screening (with the A1C test, waist circumference, blood pressure, etc.), and education sessions and materials.
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Those employees considered at risk for diabetes will be supported by a diabetes educator, who will spend four 20-minute sessions with employees to help them set goals. There will also be screening around mood disorders.
That’s because there’s a link between diabetes and mental health, said Jodi Collis, director, market access, with AstraZeneca Canada.
At the end of six months, employees will be re-screened and answer mood disorders and qualitative surveys.
“For us, it’s putting patients first,” she said.
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