District Cabinet Meeting - Sunday, January 10, 2021
Diabetes Committe Report

Reporting on two items, as well as request to talk at meeting. We continue to not be able to meet, but now that I have a professional zoom account I am hoping to get something together with the ability to have one member who does not have email access be able to call in.

Mt. Horeb Lions started their Diabetes Prevention Project service project officially on 11/18/2020. We have 5 participants in the first cohort, which is a little less than hoped for. Hopefully with much positive feedback there will be more for the second cohort which we will discuss as far as timing, but likely in the spring. It would be GREAT to have some cabinet members participating!

We have had 5 sessions, but by the time of this meeting will have had 6. So far out of the 5 participants, 3 have reported weight loss already, and no participants have gained any weight. I will have a more detailed tally of the data when I report at the meeting as well as far as minutes of activity and weight loss by the numbers. So far we have started with activity and just are delving into healthy eating options and tools before we start tracking food starting Jan 6. I record the sessions if someone is absent.

The second item to report on is related to WI Lion's Foundation and request for funding, which are related. There has been some inquiries regarding why the committee is not spending money, giving rise to wondering why clubs should continue to donate. I think we can all attest to how difficult this year has been on our communities and we have all had to rethink how we do things. In addition, there has also been limited input at the state level about having clubs do more about diabetes management. To put it simply, from a legal standpoint it seems to be the consensus that that is not somewhere Lions can safely go. As lay people, we cannot be giving diabetes management advice. Perhaps we can develop new relationships with health care providers and possibly vendors.

With that being said, if the cabinet would be willing to support this ongoing relationship with Trollway Diabetes Care, LLC, I am willing to and eager to pursue board certification in diabetes via an exam. I have met the qualifications and June will be my last opportunity to apply for the test. This meeting is actually the last opportunity to apply based on the timeline of when I earned my Masters degree. The cost is $600, plus some additional resources for study and useful publications. With this certification and Trollway Diabetes Care's commitment, our district will be poised to hopefully legally expand what we can provide to our state and possibly beyond via national grants.

Yours in Lionism and Kindness
Lion Jill Kietzke, MSN
D-1 Diabetes Committee Chair

back to January Cabinet Meeting
back to District Cabinet index