This project seeks to improve the care given to children with diabetes in Sudan.
Expected impact
150 paediatricians, nurse educators, dieticians and social workers trained
At least 25 clinics providing specialised care for children with diabetes are established
The concept of multidisciplinary team approach in diabetes care for children introduced and enhanced
Upgrade facilities for childhood diabetes care at Jabir Abualiz Diabetic Centre (JDC) to become national centre of excellence and central referral clinic for childhood diabetes.
Results at project completion
Multidisciplinary teams including 85 paediatricians, 89 nurses, 89 dieticians and 32 medical students from 14 states have been trained and provided with management guidelines and educational materials.
25 state clinics providing special care for children with diabetes have been established in 16 states.
2,000 children with diabetes have received care.
The Jabir Abualiz Diabetic Centre has been improved and now offers a full day of diabetes clinic for children and adolescents.
Education sessions for 159 teachers and 19,742 students have been conducted at 48 schools in collaboration with the health authorities. Small clinics as well as branches of the Diabetes Association have been established in each school.
3,000 copies of the Arabic book "Our Children and Diabetes" have been printed and are being distributed for free. Diabetes awareness posters have been printed and distributed. Teaching tools and audiovisual aids have been purchased. TV and radio have given coverage to the project.
Project details
So far, specialised paediatric diabetes care in Sudan has only been available in Gezeira and Khartoum States. 80% of the children with type 1 registered at the main clinic in Khartoum presented with ketoacidosis at onset.
The childhood diabetes clinic in the Sudanese capital was established in 2005. Today, almost 500 children with diabetes are registered at the clinic where they receive treatment for free or at a low cost. Although the majority of the children are from the capital area many are referred from other parts of Sudan where no such clinic currently exists and much remains to be done to ensure that children do not die or their development is not impaired due to the disease. Thus, the WDF is now supporting the Sudanese Childhood Diabetes Association in its efforts to improve the care of these children by supporting the establishment of childhood diabetes clinics in 8 remaining states.
Approach
The Sudanese Childhood Diabetes Association is the main implementing partner of this project. As the project is in alignment with the National Diabetes Programme and builds capacity within the existing health system, the Federal Ministry of Health and State Ministries of Health will also be actively involved in the activities.
In order to expand the coverage of care to children with type 1 diabetes, at least 25 clinics will be established nationwide. The clinics will be provided with guidelines for management of childhood diabetes, posters, pamphlets and various equipments for monitoring and treatment of diabetes.
Each clinic will be staffed with a paediatrician, a nurse educator and if possible a dietician and social workers. These professionals will receive six days of training in Khartoum before commencing their work as a multidisciplinary team at the clinics. In total, 150 professionals will be trained. The curriculum will follow the International Diabetes Federation's "Health Professional Education Course" which will be adapted to the Sudanese context.
Health education for the children and their parents will be arranged at the clinics and at community level e.g. at schools and via the media. For this purpose, education materials will be developed including a book in Arabic covering all aspects of diabetes education, pamphlets and an interactive website. Education will increase knowledge about diabetes among the children, their parents and the local community and thereby improve care and outcome.
It is also planned to train 96 school teachers to enable them to recognise and manage emergencies particularly hypoglycaemia.
In addition to establishing the 25 new clinics, the already existing clinic in Khartoum will also be improved. The initiatives for improving the current facilities and care include expanding the clinic's opening hours, creating a separate clinic for adolescents, procurement of new equipment, setting up a laboratory, providing computer facilities and increasing the number of multidisciplinary team members. More attention will also be given to psychological issues, where home visits and visits to the children's schools will be carried out by social workers and nurse educators to consul parents and teachers about the special needs of these children.
The clinic in Khartoum will subsequently function as a national centre of excellence where special cases can be referred to and training and research conducted.
