want to be an diabetes educator /can I ?

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hi ,

i am hoping someone will be able to help me with some info on how to become a diabetes educator?

i will start from the top "sorry this will be long but i need to vent alittle here:devil: " . i have found myself with some time on my hands, and having to look into other careers:crying2: after my job told me that i had to options, basically be fired or take a medical leave of absence because i have had to many doctors appointments . and even though i have doctors notes for every one they said they don't count.:confused: also they can replace me wile i am one leave . now i have tried my best to be there even going to work after i had a procedure because i knew they where upset , and i was still so drugged that i fell 4 or 5 times that i remember on my way to my office and then went to sleep at my desk . but hay you still have to give me credit for trying and i did manage to clock in befor going to sleep .

i have started to think about what i wanted to do and my first choice was to become an rn but hears the problem i am legally blind, among some other problems as well and my eyes are getting worse so after looking into it i doubt i can get a license . so then i started thinking about being an diabetes educator i have diabetes myself and it seems like a good fit . i have looked on the web for classes and all the info i can find says you have to be an rn to become an diabetes educator? now i know not all diabetes educator are rn's so i asked around and was told me that if you are not an rn you can still become one if you have something like a pharmacy degree. well i have none of that nor am i likely to be able to get that . so is there some way i can still become an diabetes educator? and if not can anyone think of othere jobs in the medical field i can do ?

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I looked into this one time and remember finding out that doctors and others can get the title. But I am pretty certain you have to have some kind of official background in a medical field, to get hired, if not for the title. I'm not sure, but I think this would be the case.

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I just did an internet search. Go to this site for the requirements in their entirety: NCBDE :: Welcome to the National Certification Board for Diabetes Educators. Not only do you have to hold a professional license, you also need to meet education requirements and have a minimum two years work experience in your licensed capacity.

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Thank you for info I will look into that site .

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Also one of the requirements is a minimum amount of documented time doing bona fide diabetes education and they state in the first couple of sentences on this link that the certification is meant for those whose primary duties are that of a diabetes educator. It is not for the run of the mill RN who does diabetes education when her patient is a diabetic. That about excludes the majority of us. No hospital is going to provide diabetes education duties solely to someone who is not already well versed and experienced in the role.

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Also one of the requirements is a minimum amount of documented time doing bona fide diabetes education and they state in the first couple of sentences on this link that the certification is meant for those whose primary duties are that of a diabetes educator. It is not for the run of the mill RN who does diabetes education when her patient is a diabetic. That about excludes the majority of us. No hospital is going to provide diabetes education duties solely to someone who is not already well versed and experienced in the role.

I was looking on that site to and it's looking more and more like this will just not work out . Anyone have any ida's becouse i fresh out .

know maybe no will know on the list but there is a woman at my guidedog school who was a nurse befor going blind "worst story i ever heard about who people went blind , she was on her way home after a shift and shoped to buy eye drops turns out somone had put acid in them and well now shes blind" but after going blind she went back to work working in x ray doing films ? now this was 15-20 years ago and I do not know if they even do it the same way . I know nothing about x-rays but could a blind person still work in x-ray ?

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The nurse who is the current chair of the Disabilities Specialty Practice Group of the American Association of Diabetes Educators is blind. I encourage you to contact AADE, get her contact information, and call her.

It is true that to be a Certified Diabetes Educator, you need to be a licensed health care professional. It is also true that there are many other ways to be involved in providing diabetes education as a peer counselor or lay health educator. Also, for health care providers who are not going to focus mainly on diabetes education, there are many potential levels of involvement in diabetes education., See:

http://www.diabeteseducator.org/export/sites/aade/_resources/pdf/general/PracticeGuidelines2010.pdf

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The nurse who is the current chair of the Disabilities Specialty Practice Group of the American Association of Diabetes Educators is blind. I encourage you to contact AADE, get her contact information, and call her.

It is true that to be a Certified Diabetes Educator, you need to be a licensed health care professional. It is also true that there are many other ways to be involved in providing diabetes education as a peer counselor or lay health educator. Also, for health care providers who are not going to focus mainly on diabetes education, there are many potential levels of involvement in diabetes education., See:

http://www.diabeteseducator.org/export/sites/aade/_resources/pdf/general/PracticeGuidelines2010.pdf

Wow that is grate to hear but I must be missing something somewhere because I keep being told and not always in a nice way that I can not be an RN because I have low vision and no one will ever hire me As soon as they see me with me guide dog . But some how there seems go be blind nurses .

I can not wait to call them I hope she will talk to me

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Specializes in Med./Surg. and paramed. exams.

Bringing a guide dog to work I'm sure might create some challenges. I am fortunate to have my sight and have always worked in a hospital setting, but I wonder, if you are able to accomplish getting your RN, there are possibly health care roles for RN's that do not have to deal directly with patients. Insurance companies may hire RN's for specific work dealing with the "paperwork" side of things, there are also legal nurse consultants that often do their work via phone, or being some kind of a phone nurse. Anyway, just a few ideas I had that might work, one thing to keep in mind is how difficult it is for you to read using a computer? I know a nurse that eventually had to retire due to her eye sight and the difficulties of reading on the computer. Her retirement had nothing to do with her workplace forcing her to retire, but it was based on her various doctors recommendations to save what eye sight she had. Good luck in your search!

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Bringing a guide dog to work I'm sure might create some challenges. I am fortunate to have my sight and have always worked in a hospital setting, but I wonder, if you are able to accomplish getting your RN, there are possibly health care roles for RN's that do not have to deal directly with patients. Insurance companies may hire RN's for specific work dealing with the "paperwork" side of things, there are also legal nurse consultants that often do their work via phone, or being some kind of a phone nurse. Anyway, just a few ideas I had that might work, one thing to keep in mind is how difficult it is for you to read using a computer? I know a nurse that eventually had to retire due to her eye sight and the difficulties of reading on the computer. Her retirement had nothing to do with her workplace forcing her to retire, but it was based on her various doctors recommendations to save what eye sight she had. Good luck in your search!

Thanks for the grate ideas , As for the Computer I use both screen readers and screen magnifiers to make the font any size I want or I hit a button and can have the text read to me . It's to bad your co- worker did not know about / use these to help her .

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By law under the Americans with Disabilities Act, a guide dog can go wherever the dog handler can go, as long as the dog has good behavior. The current Chair of AADE's Disabilities Specialty Practice Group was a Navy nurse (now just retired), and took her guide dog with her to work regularly. She is meticulous about keeping her dog's training up.

Trekfan, I do not know if you can find a nursing school that would admit you as a blind student. They should, but might be very hesitant. The nurse I mentioned about was a nurse already when she lost her sight.

You might try the nursing school at Case Western Reserve University, which is actively promoting inclusion of persons with disabilities in research. Because they are thinking about disabilities a lot there, they might work harder to provide reasonable accommodations for you. Do not be put off by the price tag! If they admit you, they will help you find a way to make the degree financially feasible.

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About the comment concerning guide dogs -- under the Americans with Disabilities Act, a well-behaved guide dog can go anywhere the owner can go. If the dog behaves badly (such as growling at others, or relieving itself in inappropriate places) the owner may be asked to remove the dog.

The current Chair of the Disabilities Specialty Practice Group of the American Association of Diabetes Educators uses a guide dog. Until very recently, she worked as a diabetes educator for the Navy, and took her dog to work with her almost every day. However, unlike you, she was already a nurse when she lost her eyesight. She is a warm and personable individual. I am sure she would speak with you. You should call the AADE office at 1-800-338-3633 and ask for her contact information.

Trekfan, if you are really serious about becoming a nurse, you might look into the nursing school at Case Western Reserve University. There are some people on faculty there who are very involved with disability issues, and you might find the school more willing than most to make accommodations. However, it is academically rigorous, and the program has a heavy workload. It might not be the easiest way for you to become a Certified Diabetes Educator.

You might also consider becoming a social worker, or a dietitian, or an exercise physiologist. All of these professions can also become CDEs. By the way, I also know a blind dietitian.

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