Pharmacy Students Reach Public with Uplifting Diabetes Message

Freebies, screenings, demonstrations help spread hope at Diabetes Awareness Day.

By Jeffrey Raymond
September 12, 2007

Diabetes is no fun. But thanks to students from the School of Pharmacy chapter of the American Pharmacists Association Academy of Student Pharmacists, hundreds of families at a recent public event enjoyed learning about the disease and how to control its symptoms.

People who visited the Maryland Science Center at Baltimore’s Inner Harbor on Saturday, Aug. 25, were treated to free pedometers (to measure how much exercise they get by walking each day) and cooking demonstrations (to see how tasty it can be to eat healthful foods) and even blood pressure screenings (to see if they have health issues that need to be addressed by a physician). Other displays included an eye-opening look at our expanding meal sizes and another showing how much sugar is in common foods and beverages.

Though diabetes is a deadly and increasingly common problem in the United States, the spirit of Diabetes Awareness Day was upbeat and happy. Kids who had diabetes learned how other diabetics live active, fulfilling lives. Others learned simple ways to protect their health.

Along with dozens of volunteers from the School of Pharmacy, students Seferina Kim-Walsh and Shirley Lee led the event, along with Christine Lee, PharmD, coordinator of the School’s P3 diabetes counseling project. Sponsors included Accu-Chek and Roche Diagnostics, along with Novo Nordisk and Shoppers Pharmacy.