Harvard Medical School prof speaks in Sault next week

NEWS RELEASE

CANADIAN DIABETES ASSOCIATION

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SAULT STE. MARIE, ON (April 17, 2012) - The Canadian Diabetes Association is pleased to announce they will be hosting a presentation by Dr. William Polonsky, a world-renowned psychologist, author and professor in psychiatry at Harvard Medical School.

Dr. Polonsky is founder of the Behavioral Diabetes Institute (BDI), San Diego California.

It is the world's first organization dedicated to tackling the unmet psychological needs of people with diabetes by offering an array of evidence-based clinical programs, all designed to help people overcome the emotional and behavioural obstacles to living well with diabetes.

Dr. Polonsky, PhD, CDE is an associate clinical professor in psychiatry at the University of California, San Diego.

He received his PhD in clinical psychology from Yale University and has served as chairman of the National Certification Board for Diabetes Educators, senior psychologist at the Joslin Diabetes Center in Boston, and instructor in psychiatry at Harvard Medical School. 

He is an active researcher in behavioural diabetes, the emotional and behavioural consequences of being diagnosed with diabetes, and the value of diabetes self-management support training for health care professionals.

Dr. Polonsky has served on the editorial boards of numerous professional and lay publications, including Diabetes Care, Diabetes Forecast, Clinical Diabetes, Diabetes Self-Management and Diabetes Health.

A licensed clinical psychologist and certified diabetes educator, he has also authored Diabetes Burnout: What to Do When You Can’t Take it Anymore, a book for patients published by the American Diabetes Association. 

Dr. Polonsky states: “Living well with diabetes takes time, knowledge and effort.  It can be tough to handle and many people become frustrated or 'burned-out' by the daily hassles of diabetes and the unending burden of self-care."

“We teach people with diabetes about good nutrition and the benefits of physical activity, but busy clinicians don’t always have time to teach people the tools they need to face the daily emotional burden that can accompany a chronic disease like diabetes”, says Janie Bringleson, branch coordinator of the local branch of the Canadian Diabetes Association. “Dr. Polonsky takes a humorous and insightful approach to help people deal with the distress and depression that can affect your health when you have diabetes.”

The presentation will be held Wednesday, April 25, 2012, at 7 p.m. at Sault College in Room 1030.

Admission is free, but you must register at 705-759-1233.

The Canadian Diabetes Association works in local communities to promote the health of Canadians and eliminate diabetes through a strong, nationwide network of volunteers, employees, healthcare professionals, researchers, partners and supporters.

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