News Release

International Diabetes Federation gives grant to UMDNJ-University Hospital in Newark

Grant and Award Announcement

International Diabetes Federation

The Foundation of UMDNJ has received a grant for the UMDNJ-University Hospital (UH) in Newark, New Jersey from the International Diabetes Federation (IDF) BRIDGES program to tailor interventions to improve outpatient care and access for people living with type 2 diabetes.

The academic teaching hospital provides care for a low-income, minority population with diabetes and found that many of its patients never connect to the outpatient diabetes clinic and fall through the cracks in follow-up care. UH has decided to see if the effects caused by this gap in services can be reversed by personalizing the transition from the hospital to the outpatient clinic facilitated by a diabetes care coordinator.

Approximately 40% of adult hospitalized patient at University Hospital have hyperglycemia with only 5% receiving follow-up outpatient care in the diabetes clinic. The University Hospital’s goal is to fill the gap in their diabetes care by creating a process to improve access to the outpatient diabetes clinic and by actively facilitating continuity of care between the inpatient and outpatient settings.

The University Hospital project anticipates a reduction in-hospital emergency department visits and inpatient readmissions. It also hopes to improve health-related quality-of-life, health behaviors, and metabolic control in patients with diabetes.

”Uncontrolled diabetes has a costly toll for our patients affecting loss of physical functioning and wellbeing. The most important goal of this study that needs to be met is improving the health-related quality of life for our patients. We hope that those entering the study will feel empowered to take an active role in improving the status of their diabetes through lifestyle changes, pill and/or insulin usage,” said Dr. Melissa Scollan-Koliopoulos, the study’s principal investigator.

This translation of science into practical improvements in care for people living with diabetes is at the core of the International Diabetes Federation’s BRIDGES program (Bringing Research in Diabetes to Global Environments and Systems). BRIDGES financially supports translational research projects and chose the University Hospital project as one of 11 recipients to receive translation research grants this spring. The project was chosen from over 108 global applications and will receive $65,000 for the two year study.

“Because the International Diabetes Federation received hundreds of grant applications from all over the world, we are extremely honored that they elected to fund the diabetes program at The University Hospital,” said George F. Heinrich, M.D., vice chair and CEO of the Foundation of UMDNJ. “The support of IDF serves as a great encouragement to us and helps validate the excellence of the diabetes program at The University Hospital.”

The International Diabetes Federation, which independently manages the BRIDGES program with an educational grant from Eli Lilly and Company, is committed to promoting diabetes care, prevention and a cure worldwide.

Linda Siminerio, PhD, chair of the BRIDGES Review Committee said that the Federation is committed to converting research findings into useful practices for the provision of quality care and services delivered by healthcare providers. The BRIDGES translational research projects are selected because of their innovative ideas, demonstration of the potential for health care cost savings, sustainability plans and the opportunity for their results to be widely replicated in other settings.

“The University Hospital in Newark is a great example of science moves from a clinical setting into the communities that need it,” said Siminerio. “People living with diabetes in Newark will benefit from care that reflects and meets the needs of the challenges in their lives.”

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For interviews

International Diabetes Federation, Kerrita McClaughlyn, Media Relations Manager, Email: media@idf.org Tel: +32-2-543-1639/ Mobile: +32-487-530625. Dale R. Heffler, Vice President of Communications, The Foundation of UMDNJ, heffleda@umdnj.edu, Tel: +1 732 235-3310 (New Jersey)

Note to editors:

The International Diabetes Federation (IDF) is the global advocate for the over 250 million people with diabetes worldwide. It represents over 200 diabetes associations in more than 160 countries. Its mission is to promote diabetes care, prevention and a cure worldwide. The International Diabetes Federation is an NGO in official relations with the World Health Organization and an associated NGO with the United Nations Department of Public Information. The International Diabetes Federation leads the World Diabetes Day campaign. Additional information is available at www.idf.org.

BRIDGES is the global translational grant programme of the International Diabetes Federation. It solicits proposals that support cost effective and sustainable interventions that can be adopted in real world settings, for the prevention and control of diabetes. Projects should be based on interventions already proven to be effective in trials to prevent and treat diabetes, to improve care of type 1 and type 2 diabetes and delay its complications. The interventions proposed should have the potential to be widely disseminated to clinical practice, individuals and communities. For more information, visit http://www.idfbridges.org.

University Hospital (UH) is a 513-bed acute care hospital owned and operated by UMDNJ located in the city of Newark. As the primary teaching hospital of the New Jersey Medical School (NJMS) in Newark, the hospital is committed to providing the highest quality of patient care, medical training and education, clinical research and community service. UH has a medical staff of 927, and is the largest medical teaching program in the state. Additional information is available at www.umdnj.edu


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