Back to Annual Meeting Page		American Public Health Association 133rd Annual Meeting & Exposition December 10-14, 2005 Philadelphia, PA

Abstract #106732

Erin Kane¹, Julia Dezen¹, Josefine Wendel, MS, RD², and Ricki Lacy, MS, RN². (1) Harvard University, 1356 Harvard Yard Mail Center, Cambridge, MA 02138, 617-493-1615, jdezen@fas.harvard.edu, (2) Cambridge Public Health Department, 119 Windsor Street, Cambridge, MA 02139

Diabetic teens and children face a series of daily challenges in checking their blood sugar, taking injections, and carefully planning their meals. The social and psychological challenges of diabetes are often ignored in standard medical care, but they are significant. Integrating diabetes care into social situations can be particularly difficult in the teen years, and living with diabetes can be an isolating experience. Parents are faced with the stress that having a child with a chronic illness places on the family.

To address the needs of children and teens with diabetes, we created Beta Buddies, a mentoring program that pairs them with diabetic college students. Harvard students with diabetes were recruited as volunteers. Children and teens with diabetes were approached via the School Health program about their interest in the program. As described in the information sent out to families, the program is not medical in nature but rather is meant to provide social support and an avenue through which participants can share their frustrations and anxieties about living with diabetes. In addition to establishing a one-on-one relationship, participants are able to meet peers with diabetes through group activities. We will present program evaluation results collected from parents, participants, and volunteers. The evaluation will address three components: impact of the program on families, participants, and the college volunteers. More specifically, we will investigate whether the mentorship changed how participants think about their future, their ability to handle their diabetes care, and their emotional well-being.

Learning Objectives:

• Recognize the significance of college-aged volunteers with diabetes as a source of support for children and adolescents with diabetes in the community.
• Describe if and how mentoring by volunteers to participants supported benefited participants and families.
• Describe the benefits that college volunteers with diabetes derived from being a mentor to a child or adolescent with diabetes.

Keywords: Diabetes, Adolescent Health

Presenting author's disclosure statement:

I wish to disclose that I have NO financial interests or other relationship with the manufactures of commercial products, suppliers of commercial services or commercial supporters.

Recorded presentation