This page is in support of an education session I’m doing at EXPOsing diabetes Cairns on Saturday 9th June 2018.

About

EXPOsing diabetes is a one-day educational event for people living with type 1 and 2 diabetes.

This event will equip you with the knowledge you need to live well with diabetes.

The day consists of interactive and engaging presentations from health professionals who work closely in the area of diabetes. You will come away from the day feeling more confident, motivated and more empowered to live well with your diabetes.

[Source: www.diabetesqld.org.au/get-involved/what’s-on/2018/june/exposing-diabetes-cairns.aspx]

Intro

Paul McNamara is a Fellow of the Australian College of Mental Health Nurses. He has been working in Cairns since 1995. Paul’s day job is providing mental health support and education to general hospital patients and staff.

Presentation

The presentation itself can be accessed via prezi.com/user/meta4RN or by clicking on the image below:



Key Messages, References + Further Info

The session is an oral presentation, so I don’t intend to replicate all of the content here.

Collated below are some of the key messages of the presentation, the references/evidence I’ve used, and how to access further info.

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“It’s a Fine Line” – Myth vs Reality meta4RN.com/fineline

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About 20% of us will experience mental health problems in any given year [source: 2007 National Survey of Mental Health and Wellbeing].

About 45% of us will experience mental health problems in our lifetime [source: 2007 National Survey of Mental Health and Wellbeing].

Up to half of us with diabetes will experience mental health problems in our lifetime [source: Diabetes Australia].

Anxiety and depression are the most common mental health problems [source: Mindframe].

Depression, anxiety and other mental problems are usually multifactorial. A good way to understand this is to consider the biopsychosocial model of mental health [source: Engel 1977].

Australia has introduced the idea of “stepped care” to respond to mental health matters [source: Northern Queensland Primary Health Network].

For information about prevention or early intervention with mental health problems, often the “best fit” will be online info via headtohealth.gov.au and/or via one of the apps available via the same website [source: Northern Queensland Primary Health Network].

If the online/app route doesn’t help, or if you’re experiencing symptoms of mental health difficulties, you should chat with your GP about it. S/he will discuss treatment and support options with you, which may include medication and/or referral to one of the local speciality services. It’s a good idea to book a longer appointment with your GP to discuss mental health stuff: neither you or your GP will want to feel rushed [source: Northern Queensland Primary Health Network].

If the above options haven’t helped, the mental health problem is complex, severe or urgent, it’s outside of business hours, and/or your questions would best be answered by a local specialist mental health professional, phone the Cairns Acute Care Team on 1300 64 2255 (1300 MH CALL) [source: Queensland Health].

End

Many thanks to Claire Massingham, Events Coordinator @ Diabetes Queensland for inviting me to present at EXPOsing diabetes Cairns. Thanks also to Endocrinologist Dr Luke Conway for making the suggestion to Claire.

A quick clarification: although this web page has info about how to access mental health support, it’s my personal web site. I can’t offer direct support or referrals from here. Please access further info and/or support via the options listed above.

That said, I welcome comments in the comments section below.

Thanks for visiting. 🙂

Paul McNamara, 2nd June 2018

Short URL: meta4RN.com/diabetes