Virginia Hagger
Dr Virginia Hagger is a RN-CDE, who has worked in the diabetes field as a clinician, program manager and researcher. She is the Course Leader for the Grad Cert in Diabetes Education.
Location Deakin University, Geelong, Australia
Activity
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Virginia Hagger replied to Susan GHATTAS
Hi @melindamg being overweight affects how well insulin works in the cells of the liver and muscle. Insulin acts as a gatekeeper to allow glucose into the cells to be used for energy. If the cells are resistant to insulin, the pancreas produces more insulin to try to reduce blood glucose levels. If the pancreas can't make more insulin then diabetes may...
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Virginia Hagger made a comment
A new resource is available for carers of family of friends with diabetes and may be helpful to the many course participants who are in this role.
https://static.diabetesaustralia.com.au/s/fileassets/diabetes-australia/d301193c-1325-4657-92f3-1336c8c36f04.pdf -
Virginia Hagger replied to Joanne Gould
Interesting article Joanne, and very relevant to the advice we give as health professionals and any 'self-help' advice that does not take into consideration the context of people's real lives.
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Virginia Hagger replied to Shevaun Hodge
Thanks Joanne, I have provided a more direct link to the exercise page on the Diabetes Australia website. Couldn't find any other broken links.
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Virginia Hagger made a comment
Thank you everyone for your insightful and compassionate contributions to the comments over the past 4 weeks. I have enjoyed reading your posts and conversations and glad that you have found the course worthwhile. Keep learning, posting and sharing your thoughts!
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Hi @CherylHackett this might not be relevant to the struggle you are having adjusting to life with diabetes, but 'self-compassion' came to mind. this resource might be helpful? https://www.cci.health.wa.gov.au/Resources/Looking-After-Yourself/Self-Compassion
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Thanks for your interesting and thoughtful contributions to this topic and other learner's comments Joanne, it seems to have raised lots of issues and feelings for you.
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Virginia Hagger replied to Taru Sorsa
@GityafroozPourahmadi Do you mean family-centred care? This is considered best practice quality care to involve the person / family in decision-making and consider their experience, needs and preferences. An example is from the Royal Children's Hospital in Melbourne shttps://www.rch.org.au/policy/public/Patient_and_Family_Centred_Care/
The Australian... -
You would need to have a good relationship and trust for that approach to work, but great that it helped get you back on track John.
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Virginia Hagger replied to Shevaun Hodge
Older age is a risk factor for type 2 diabetes - the body does not work as well as we age.
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Virginia Hagger replied to Colin Kemp
I hope you find some benefit from the learning community here Colin.
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Virginia Hagger replied to Frances L
Interesting point about portion sizes Joanne. As a child we were made to eat everything on our plate but have you noticed the size of dinner plates today? A simple strategy to eat less can be to use a smaller plate for meals (you might have to look for an old one in a second-hand store).
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Sorry to hear that your husband is still experiencing long term effects of treatment. The new immunotherapy based cancer treatments look optimistic but early days yet.
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@SanthirasegaramBalenthiran Insulin treatment is common for people with type 2 diabetes. Although there are several new medications available, over time these medications may not be as effective at keeping blood glucose levels in the optimal range because the amount of insulin produced by the pancreas declines. Some medications for other conditions, e.g....
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Definitely!
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Virginia Hagger replied to Gill Thompson
Thanks for your contributions to the discussion Gill. As you mentioned in a previous post, having other medical conditions makes living with and managing diabetes much more complicated, which highlights that the standard guidelines may not apply to everyone. It sounds like you are keeping active despite your limitations and probably some days are better than...
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Being in hospital can be disempowering. I can understand the reasons for a regimented approach but there are many ways that people can retain some control, by doing their own BG check with the hospital meter, being informed of the result and asking what you would do to self-manage, etc. Your story Gill is a good reminder about person-centred care.
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In Australia there are diabetes educators at many GP clinics, community health services and hospitals as well as private practice. The peak body is Diabetes Australia (and state diabetes organisation) which provides telephone helpline and information. Others may like to comment on diabetes education services and how to access them in their country.
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Interesting that you have included 'empowerment' Gityafrooz in your definition. Empowerment is an important concept in relation to health, wellbeing and self-care.
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Food is a very important part of our social interactions and more and more people seem to have food intolerances and special requirements.
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Nice reflection @MaryanneTill . Your perspective has changed from really hearing what your sister was saying.
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@MaureenGorman thanks Maureen, you have mentioned a number of positive ways to find support, promote acceptance and coping to live with diabetes.
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Virginia Hagger replied to Catharine Babbitt
Well done your daughter self-diagnosing diabetes! Accurate stories in books and TV can be really useful health education.
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@MaureenGorman Sadly there is a lot of misinformation about the causes of both types of diabetes which leads to unnecessary distress for people with diabetes and parents/families.
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Thanks for sharing that story Denise. It would help to walk in someone else's shoes just for bit to see how it really is for them.
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Virginia Hagger replied to Maxine Sandoval
Not feeling alone with your problem and feeling others understand is really helpful when living with a chronic condition and an important benefit of group education programs such as DESMOND.
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Yes, type 1 diabetes can be diagnosed at any age, more than half are diagnosed over 20 years of age.
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Virginia Hagger replied to Frances L
Thanks Frances that's a really interesting comparison of the different health policies and funding related to diabetes in the UK and USA. It would be nice to have greater equity regarding health and health care. In some countries people can't even afford or obtain regular supplies of insulin. Unused excess diabetes supplies can be donated - see Insulin for...
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Virginia Hagger made a comment
There are many common stories of people having friends and family members with type 1 or type 2 diabetes or gestational diabetes. For some there is the awareness and opportunity to prevent diabetes. Thank you for sharing your experiences, I'm sure there is lots to learn from each other.
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Virginia Hagger replied to Gill Thompson
Sounds a lot to deal with Gill. I hope you find the course is helpful.
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There are plenty of helpful comments from your fellow learners. I hope you find them useful.
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Virginia Hagger replied to nicola maslin
There is always so much more to learn. Glad that you have some new insights
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Virginia Hagger replied to Ian HEMPSHALL
Glad that you have found it worthwhile Ian. Thanks for your contributions to the discussion.
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Virginia Hagger made a comment
Some great examples of positive. empowering language.
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Virginia Hagger made a comment
While shock tactics can work to change people's behaviour or get tested (referring to Ian's example in Step 2.7 https://www.futurelearn.com/courses/living-well-with-diabetes/4/steps/314478/comments?page=1#comment_30894442) it may not work for all situations. The media in Australia has been influenced by the road traffic and anti-smoking campaigns that invoke...
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Nice example Emily of two life transitions at the same time. Very hard to juggle priorities and the accompanying stresses. Well done.
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Virginia Hagger replied to Billie Wealleans
Well done Billie. Yes, the research is showing that the same approach to weight loss doesn't work for everyone. An individualised approach to food and eating is likely to be more successful in terms of achieving health goals and meeting nutritional requirements and taking into consideration individual preferences. While cutting out all carbohydrates is not...
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Virginia Hagger replied to Christina Klemm
Great take home messages Christina!
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Great insights Huey. How much better would we know people if we listened more and talked less?
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Virginia Hagger replied to Taru Sorsa
We refer to 'person-centred care', trying to take into consideration the whole person when making self-management plans. Sometimes it can be challenging for health professionals not to impose their own goals and priorities into what they would like their patients to do, but this is unlikely to achieve the best outcomes for the person.
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Virginia Hagger replied to Taru Sorsa
Nice explanation Taru that you are not defined by your diabetes. People adapt and integrate a chronic condition into their life in many different ways.
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Glad that you had a positive experience Taru despite being so unwell.
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When people have cancer their diabetes may not be given very high priority but thanks for highlighting this important area Agnes. The medications used in cancer treatment, and the added stresses that go with a diagnosis can play havoc with blood glucose levels, and may lead to diabetes for some people.
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Sounds like you are healthier since you were diagnosed with diabetes Ian and have made some really positive changes. Thanks for the useful links.
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Virginia Hagger replied to Brandy Amos
Thanks for sharing your insight Brandy. Your reference to a 3-legged stool is similar to one explained to me by an Australian Aboriginal woman who talked about a 'wonky spirit' when life is out of balance, which can be the cause of poor physical or mental health. The legs of the chair were the positive and negative things that affect the spirit, eg. family...
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Interesting point Taru, the goals and targets focus on disease and biomedical factors but do not include mental health. While cultural differences likely influence some of the health issues, such as alcohol, obesity or smoking, other influences such as political and economic factors, such as conflict, famine and poverty are also key determinants of health...
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Virginia Hagger replied to Lorna Gleasure
You're welcome Lorna. Thank you for sharing your experiences and contributing to the discussion.
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Nice examples Emily of the many decisions just in one day of diabetes!
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Sorry to hear that you had a difficult start to your life with diabetes and your new country. It sounds like you are doing much better now.
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Resilience is a termed being used more often; eg. developing skills and having the resources for coping with adversity and illness.
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I can vouch for the delicious food in your home country (Peru) Analia! The traditional, home cooked foods are very healthy. As you suggest, having treats as 'sometimes' or special occasion food is okay, just not everyday.
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Interesting point Mary, about the cultural differences regarding body weight and what is considered a healthy or desirable weight.
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Virginia Hagger replied to Marian *
It is common for carers to have poorer mental health. Remembering to take care of yourself is important, too.
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It is hard when diagnosed at a young age, but there have been many improvements in treatment, technology and outcomes in recent years.
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Having family, teachers and health professionals who are positive and supportive is so important, especially at this young age.
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@SanthirasegaramBalenthiran The website and video about HbA1c testing here provides a good explanation https://www.healthdirect.gov.au/hba1c-test . There are two ways of reporting HbA1c, as % and IFCC, depending on where you live. Australia and the UK have moved to using IFCC which reports in mmol/mol, and the USA still uses %. See this online converter from...
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Virginia Hagger replied to Narelle Brown
@ChristineCoombe Hi Christine, the course doesn't focus on the medical aspects of diabetes. You might find the information about diabetes prevention helpful from Diabetes UK https://www.diabetes.org.uk/preventing-type-2-diabetes
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I like your analogy Monika
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Well done Judi - positive and encouraging language to help put the person in charge.
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Virginia Hagger replied to Maria Vivian
Great examples Maria. It is important to have the resources for self-care to be empowered - including physical, economic and psychosocial resources.
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@MariaVivian I agree Maria. In Australia our road safety and smoking campaigns have been very successful. Whereas alcohol and risky drinking is so pervasive.
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Virginia Hagger replied to keely r
You raise a good point Keely about the interaction between our physical and mental health and wellbeing.
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Virginia Hagger replied to Eva Noemi Szabo
@EvaNoemiSzabo Hi Eva. Although this course does not deal with the causes and treatment of diabetes (this was covered in 'Demystifying diabetes' which has now finished), you might find this website useful https://www.niddk.nih.gov/health-information/diabetes/overview/what-is-diabetes/prediabetes-insulin-resistance and there will be stories and suggestions from...
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Virginia Hagger replied to Narelle Brown
Thanks for sharing your story Narelle. I hope you find the course and other peoples' stories helpful.
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Virginia Hagger made a comment
Many people have described the negative emotions that come from having and living with a chronic illness. Thank you for your honest reflections. Among people with diabetes, we refer to these negative emotions as 'diabetes distress', which are a normal response to the demands, worries and burden of living with diabetes. We cover this later in the degree, but...
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Thanks for your honest insights Margaret. What helped to change your outlook?
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Thanks Carla, having positive social support is very beneficial for an individual's perspective on their health particularly in response to illness or disability. Unfortunately negative responses are just as influential and we will consider the impact of stigma next week.
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Thanks for the link and reference to Ubuntu Ian, a really interesting contribution to our definition of health and wellness.
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Virginia Hagger replied to Bob P
A nice summary and interpretation the key concepts Bob!
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Virginia Hagger made a comment
It is interesting to read the different definitions of health, from people who are well and from those who are living with a chronic condition and from younger to older people.
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Yes it helps when healthy choices are easy choices!
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I agree Graham, the language we use is important and more positive language is helpful.
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Virginia Hagger replied to Seshasai T
Interesting to contrast the social attitudes to different conditions Seshasai. Mental health conditions are less stigmatised but still not well understood in Australia.
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That's an interesting observation Christina about the importance of music and dance for Cubans for health and wellbeing!
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Virginia Hagger made a comment
Most people know family or friends who are living with diabetes or have diabetes themselves, so have many experiences to share.
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Welcome Lisa. Diabetes is a demanding condition, even when you know what to do.
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Glad you are using your time off to do this course Mary, but sorry to hear you are affected by the shutdown. I hope it is resolved soon for all the workers.
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Virginia Hagger made a comment
Thanks for your stories about why you are doing this course. Many varied reasons, and some strong histories of diabetes in the family. Thanks for joining us.
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Virginia Hagger replied to Taru Sorsa
Welcome Taru. We will be touching on diabetes-related stigma in week 2, so I look forward to your insights from your experience and research.
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Virginia Hagger made a comment
Hello and welcome to this short course, Living well with diabetes. This course is an introduction to one of the units from the Graduate Certificate of Diabetes Education, Diabetes in Social and Psychological Contexts, so we are considering living with diabetes from this perspective, and not how it is managed from a medical perspective. I hope you will find the...
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Virginia Hagger replied to Suzanne Egan
Thank you for sharing your story Suzanne. It must have been very scary for you and your family back then. From your comments it seems like you have made the best of it, despite all the difficulties you face.
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Virginia Hagger made a comment
Welcome to those people who have recently joined the course. I hope you will find it interesting and join in the discussions and the many contributions and stories from your fellow learners in the Comments.
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Hi Heather. Thanks for sharing your interesting story as it shows your predisposition and glucose intolerance at different time points, and gradual onset of type 2 diabetes.
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@Md.AliKador Thank you for your question. Some countries, including Australia, have specific roles for diabetes educators who work in hospitals and community health services and private practice. There is a professional association that oversees standards of education and care. If you are living in Bangladesh, the Diabetic Association of Bangladesh may be able...
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@LetoLetsatsi Cooking competitions are very popular on television. They have increased interest in home cooking but don't necessarily promote healthy eating or foods that can be easily prepared at home. So may not be influencing populations that are more likely to be overweight (in Western countries people who are more socially disadvantaged). But in saying...
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Here are some examples of Australian programs https://transformus.com.au/ https://ww2.health.wa.gov.au/Articles/N_R/Resources-and-websites-for-promoting-health-in-schools
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Good to see that the UK government is investing in public health research. As others have pointed out, young people have less healthy lifestyles than we had in our youth, so changes are needed to prevent future diabetes risk for all age groups.
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Virginia Hagger made a comment
Thank you for your participation in the course and sharing your insights. We are pleased that you can apply the knowledge to make changes for your own health.
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Virginia Hagger made a comment
Thank you for joining me and Cath in this short course. We hope it has demystified some of the myths and controversies related to diabetes mellitus. Thank you for your contributions and positive comments that you have shared with, and inspired other learners.
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Welcome Jillian. There are many changes to the way diabetes is managed now, not only treatment options but a greater focus on self-management as you have observed.
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Virginia Hagger replied to Susan GHATTAS
Quite right @SusanGHATTAS tackling type 2 diabetes requires a collective effort, including policymakers and food manufacturers, schools and families.
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Virginia Hagger replied to Susan GHATTAS
In Australia and the UK we refer to insulin resistance but means the same thing. We also talk about insulin sensitivity but mostly in relation to physical activity and how exercise makes the cells more responsive to insulin. Weight loss also improves insulin sensitivity.
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@TowolawiOlukemi Yes, people need simple information that shows them what to do. Have a look at the pictorial guide to healthy eating developed by Diabetes Victoria https://diabeteswa.com.au/wp-content/uploads/2016/07/ATSI-Healthy-Eating-Pictorial-Guide-LO-RES.pdf
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Great ideas Omobolanle. Children and young people are a great way to change the community and to invest in health for the future. There are many programs now around the world focused on schools.
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@ROCKSONANKOMAH Glucose gives the body energy for the cells to perform their functions, e.g. muscles, brain, etc. all use glucose. Glucose comes from the food we eat (mostly from starchy foods/carbohydrate - e.g. bread, pasta, fruit, and can be stored in the liver and released back into the blood stream when we are fasting (eg. overnight) and our cells need...
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Virginia Hagger replied to Jayanthi Elliott
Welcome Jayanthi. I hope you find the course is helpful.
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Diabetes is usually a contributing factor, eg. to heart disease, but may not be recorded as the cause of death. Whereas in countries where insulin or treatment is not available, diabetes may be the direct cause of death.
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Interesting hypothesis Germaine. If you take a social determinants approach then there may be something in the influence of these factors. E.g. Global warming may affect food production and change in diets, and political policies may lead to greater inequalities in income, employment and access to health care that affect people’s opportunity to have optimal...
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Yes a cure has been elusive but still a lot of promising research is occurring worldwide. As John says, the role of gut bacteria is a new line of research.
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Virginia Hagger replied to Ann Parker
Thank you for the article Ann. It Is likely that there is more than one mechanism leading to hyperglycaemia in type 2 diabetes, depending on the genes that are involved. there are a number of genes that have been found to predispose people to the development of type 2 diabetes and others that confer risk for type 1 diabetes.
