The “Know Diabetes by Heart™” Campaign aims to raise awareness about the link between diabetes and heart disease and to provide education and resources to help people with diabetes lower their risk of heart disease.
Type 2 diabetes is a serious condition that can lead to a number of complications, including heart disease, stroke, kidney disease and more. Type 2 diabetes and heart failure can be a troubling pair. They can threaten health, decrease quality of life and increase care costs. Good news – recent studies have found that new treatments for diabetes may also improve heart failure outcomes.
As we celebrate American Hearth Month in February, we can help individuals improve their heart health by taking steps to manage their type 2 diabetes and lowering the risk for heart disease:
- Encourage individuals to work with their healthcare provider, doctor or care team to develop a plan that works for them
- Review current medications prescribed and use
- Share resources and tips for a healthy diet and promote regular physical activity
- Monitor blood sugar levels and reminders to take medication as prescribed.
- Outline the benefits of quitting smoking and avoiding exposure to secondhand smoke
- Identify tools for managing stress and ensure adequate sleep
Additional Resources
The American Heart Association has tools and resources to support quality improvement in the outpatient setting: Target: BP™, Target: Type 2 Diabetes and Check. Change. Control. Cholesterol™ – work together to reduce cardiovascular deaths, heart attacks and strokes among the 100 million+ Americans living with hypertension, high cholesterol and/or type 2 diabetes.
Get With The Guidelines® is a proven in-hospital approach to improving patient outcomes across cardiovascular and stroke focus areas. Each Get With The Guidelines program promotes consistent adherence to the latest research-driven guidelines and measurement, while providing data and information to professionals for continual improvement in patient care.
2023 Outpatient Target: Type 2 Diabetes Program Updates I Tuesday, February 7 from 3:00 – 4:00 pm CT
Join American Heart Association guest presenter and staff as they review new updates to the 2023 Target: Type 2 Diabetes Outpatient Recognition Program. Dana Weisshaar, MD, member of AHA’s Outpatient Quality Advisory Committee will share a new and exciting area of focus and the science behind the evidence-based guidelines.