Newswise – PHILADELPHIA, PA (Jan 22, 2021) – Advances in diabetes technology have improved the quality of life and blood sugar control in children with type 1 diabetes. However, data shows that a subset of children are left behind. Individuals from low-income families and non-Hispanic Black (NHB) children have no benefits related to technological advances and are at greater risk of diabetes complications and adverse outcomes due to persistent poor blood sugar control.
In an invited comment to be published in the journal Diabetes Care, the researchers describe how socioeconomic differences and structural racism affect health care for children with diabetes. They illustrate the importance of looking for and addressing social determinants of health and delivering community-based interventions. The top priority is to study how the diabetes health team is involved in the process that causes health inequalities. They emphasize the need to align diabetes care with the American Academy of Pediatrics’ Policy Statement, which advocates innovative cross-sectoral partnerships to improve equity in medicine, business, the environment, housing, justice, and education.
“Aligning diabetes care with this mission is our only hope of eliminating the differences in treatment and outcomes among children with type 1 diabetes,” says lead author of the article, Dr. Terri H. Lipman, CRNP, FAAN, the Miriam Stirl Endowed Professor of Nutrition, Professor of Child Nursing, and Assistant Dean of Community Engagement at the University of Pennsylvania’s School of Nursing.
The comment “Racial and Socio-Economic Differences in Pediatric Type 1 Diabetes: Time for a Paradigm Shift in Approach” will be available online. The article is co-authored by Colin P. Hawkes of the Perelman School of Medicine at the University of Pennsylvania.
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Via the University of Pennsylvania’s School of Nursing
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