Q1-11

Looking back - and ahead

Time flies - especially when one is doing work which one enjoys. This is certainly true for me and my colleagues in the World Diabetes Foundation. We are already into April of 2011 and in less than a year the Foundation will celebrate its tenth anniversary. We will of course use the milestone to evaluate what has been done and to refocus and rededicate our efforts. To prepare ourselves for the future it is important to look back and reflect. That is what we started doing late last year by initiating a stakeholder perception mapping using an independent agency to interview our stakeholders. The outcome of the mapping was a resounding endorsement of the need and the way that World Diabetes Foundation has tried to address the need; as well as the focus areas and advocacy that the Foundation has done and supported. I would like to share a few quotes from some of the respondents:

"The World Diabetes Foundation is the single most important contributor to diabetes care"

"They have a niche that is badly needed and often they are the only player doing much"

"...in [my] country the World Diabetes Foundation is the only organisation that provides support for diabetes [...] For me they are the only hope."

" they are not really comparable - they are head and shoulder above [...]. the World Diabetes Foundation not only helps provide just funding but whatever they can provide, including technical knowledge. So I think they are much better and their work is very, very recommendable"

While making one proud, these comments also indicate that we have a responsibility to document and share the learning from our work so that appropriate cost efficient programmes can be created and replicated.

So far, 2011 has been full of activities. Our programme coordinators have as always been active monitoring projects and in the first quarter, project partners in ten countries have received visits from the Foundation. Three of these visits are showcased in this Newsletter. While belonging to three different geographical regions, they indicate the dire need to support initiatives for diabetes; they indicate the sometimes extremely difficult circumstances in which these projects are implemented and they demonstrate the ownership, innovative thinking and resilience of the local partners. Common to them all is also that the people and organisations behind these projects build on the training-of-trainers principle to decentralise and expand diabetes care nationwide.

In Kosovo, a national diabetes plan was submitted in 2005, but due to lack of funds no action was taken until 2009 when WDF facilitated the process with a modest amount of money. This has shown to be very efficient and today Kosovo has six diabetes centres demonstrating the catalytic role the Foundation plays.

The challenges facing the Maldives which comprise of 200 inhabited islands are first and foremost the logistical challenge of reaching small populations on scattered island atolls. The Diabetes Society of Maldives has taken innovative measures to retain health care personnel trained under the project by introducing a contract system. I particularly encourage our project partners to read the article about the Maldives for inspiration.

In Madagascar, our Programme Coordinator was met with an approach which was surprisingly energetic for a country with huge immediate challenges in terms of access to care and medication. The Madagascar Diabetes Association (A.MA.DIA), applies the method of art therapy for people with chronic diseases and seems to be making a lasting difference for people with diabetes, their families and health care providers in overcoming some of the challenges posed by diabetes in Madagascar.

For those who care for facts and figures, we present a brief overview of applications received and approved over time; funds distributed and regions which receive support. This is a way of checking if we practice what we preach. We think so, but we invite you to judge for yourselves.

Finally, we are all happy to welcome back Ms Hanne Strandgaard, Programme Coordinator, who returned from maternity leave and is ready and eager to cater for projects primarily in the South-East Asia Region.

Hope you will enjoy the stories in this newsletter!

Dr. Anil Kapur
Managing Director
World Diabetes Foundation

Kosovo - on the gateway to Europe

In the south-eastern corner of Europe, a group of dedicated health care personnel has managed to improve access to diabetes care to thousands of people. The specific place is Kosovo and the recipe is relatively simple: guidelines, training and decentralisation.

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Project 200 islands in the Maldives

How do ensure quality care in small and sparsely populated islands? Even more so, how do you face up to the global challenge of migration of health workers? The Diabetes Society of Maldives has introduced a contract system to deal with the challenge.  

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Creating access to care in Madagascar 

Amidst enormous challenges in terms of infrastructure and medicine supply, the Madagascan Diabetes Association applies an approach which focuses on empowering the individual. The approach is named ‘art therapy' and seems to be making a lasting difference for people with diabetes.

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Fulfilling a real need

World Diabetes Foundation facts and figures. How many applications did the Foundation receive last year? And how many materialised into projects? Which regions received most support? And which countries are actually included in the particular geographical regions?

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