'Capacity building of diabetes caregivers needed in India'

Stating that awareness about proper injection techniques is a must for effective diabetes management, a leading endocrinologist says capacity building of caregivers for diabetes is needed in India.

Like US and Britain, India should focus on strengthening skills and competencies of nurses and those involved in diabetes management. Moreover, standardisation of procedures used in the disease therapy is also required.

"Compared to countries like America and Britain, we need to go for capacity building of caregivers. The compounders who administer the insulin injections, in most cases, are not taught about the proper site of injection, which is important for diabetes therapy," Subhankar Chowdhury, head, department of endocrinology, Institute of Post-Graduate Medical Education & Research (SSKM Hospital), told IANS Friday.

Chowdhury is an advisory member for the Forum for Injection Technique (FIT) which in collaboration with Research Society for the Study of Diabetes in India (RSSDI) is organising training workshops and plenary lectures on insulin injection techniques in the city this weekend.

The campaign will train more than 100 nurses and diabetes educators.