Patient Education

Diabetes Today Program

To sign up for a class call (617) 732-2400.

A series of five easy-to-follow classes on managing your diabetes

First Steps

This 90-minute class is the foundation for the other classes in the series and is facilitated by a nurse educator. It is highly recommended that this class be taken first as it provides an introduction to all the other classes. You will complete a self-assessment questionnaire that will be used to develop a personal self-care education plan. Topics covered include:

What diabetes is and how it affects the body
How to care for diabetes
Diabetes medications
Prevention and treatment of complications
How to handle high and low blood glucose
Target goals for blood glucose
What to do on a sick day

What Can I Eat?

A nutritionist facilitates this 90-minute class, which provides introductory information on meal planning. You will develop a “starter meal plan” with specific attention to carbohydrates and portion sizes. At the end of class, we encourage you to sign up for the Foods that Fit class. Topics covered include:

Healthy eating
Carbohydrate counting and identification of personal carbohydrate goals for meals and snacks
Impact of food portions and label reading
Nutrition and diabetes misconceptions
Importance of record-keeping of blood glucose and food intake

Foods That Fit

Facilitated by a nutritionist, this 90-minute class builds on the information and reinforces the skills developed in What Can I Eat? This class helps you individualize the starter meal plan. What Can I Eat? must be taken before Foods that Fit. At the end of this class, we encourage participants to make a 30-minute private appointment with a nutritionist to further individualize the meal plan and assess personal progress. You will learn how to:

Adjust their "starter meal plan" based on their blood glucose and food records
Select healthy food choices for blood glucose, lipid and weight control when eating at home and dining out

Exercise Basics

You can make a huge difference in managing your diabetes by being physically active. This class, facilitated by an exercise physiologist, teaches you the benefits of safe activity and exercise. We encourage you to schedule a follow-up private session with an exercise physiologist to help track your progress in reaching your goals. You will learn how to:

Exercise safely.
Identify the barriers to getting more active in your life and find solutions to overcome them.