November is Diabetes Awareness Month

Gottlieb Offers $5 Screening for Diabetics and More

The statistics on diabetes are alarming and they are on the rise.· According to the American Diabetes Association, an estimated 24,500 diabetics are in the western suburban area of Melrose Park, Northlake, Forest Park, Stone Park, River Grove and Elmwood Park. · More than 246 million people in the United States have diabetes, and by 2020, that number is expected to soar to 380 million.· One in two minorities born in 2000 will develop diabetes in their lifetime, if current trends continue.· For those with diabetes, 86,000 will lose a foot or leg to the disease· 30 percent will develop a wound that will not heal by itself. To promote better health during November—National Diabetes Month—Gottlieb Memorial Hospital and the Gottlieb Health and Fitness Center are offering the following:

Diabetic Finger-Stick Screening
$5, Sun., Nov.11, Mon., Nov. 12 and Tues., Nov. 13, 7 a.m. – 11 a.m.Gottlieb Health and Fitness CenterNo fasting is required; get immediate results and discuss your health with a registered nurse.  Please register by calling 708/450-5790.

Diabetic Self-Management Training
By appointment; must have physician referralCost based on insurance coverageLearn from Donna Billmeier, clinical nurse specialist and diabetes educator, how to monitor diabetes, use insulin and oral medications, prevent and treat complications, and exercise safely. Call 708/450-5799 to schedule a convenient time.For counseling with a dietician on nutrition, including how to plan meals, shop and cook, call 708/681-3200 ext. 2517 to make an appointment.

Diabetic Shoe-Fitting
By appointment; must have physician referral.Cost based on insurance coverage.Medicare pays 80 percent for qualified patients.Clark Chrisman, RPH, certified pedorthist and certified diabetic educator, fits qualified patients with diabetic shoes and inserts, and provides footcare education.  Call 708/450-4941 to make an appointment. Diabetic Foot Screening-$20If you have diabetes, find out from Clark Chrisman, RPH, certified pedorthist and certified diabetic educator, if you’re at risk for developing foot neuropathy-the loss of protective sensation-and how to manage the condition. Call 708/450-4941 to make an appointment.

Diabetic Wound Care
Wounds that won’t heal by themselves will occur in 30 percent of all diabetics. Gottlieb’s Wound Healing and Hyperbaric Center offers special technology for healing wounds, including diabetic foot ulcers, that don’t respond to other treatments alone. Call 708/681-7373 for more information.

Gottlieb Memorial Hospital, a non-profit, independent, community hospital founded in 1961, has more than 300 physicians and dentists on staff, approximately 1,200 employees and 200 volunteers. Gottlieb is one of the few area hospitals to receive Joint Commission accreditation.  The 36-acre medical campus in Melrose Park, Ill, is home to the Midwest’s first medically based health & fitness center. Gottlieb Health & Fitness Center is a full-service facility offering innovative fitness programs, two pools, indoor Harvard running track, strength and weight training.

Gottlieb is best known for:· Emergency care as a Level II Trauma Center· Comprehensive heart care, including open-heart surgery with outcomes among the best in the nation, and a new state-of-the-art catheterization lab· A cancer program, fully accredited by the American College of Surgeons’ (ACS) Commission on Cancer, and includes radiation and chemotherapy provided by our affiliate, the Marjorie G. Weinberg Cancer Care Center adjacent to the hospital.

More information, including the daily allergen count, can be found on Gottlieb’s website at www.gottliebhospital.org.