Vanderbilt University Medical Center (VUMC) Health and Wellness has received a Certificate of Full Recognition from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) for its diabetes prevention program for employees.
The recognition follows Vanderbilt’s decision in 2014 to begin offering the evidence-based CDC Diabetes Prevention Program to employees and spouses who have pre-diabetes or who are at high risk for developing Type 2 diabetes.
A trained lifestyle coach leads the group program focused on weight loss through healthier eating, reducing stress and getting more physical activity. It’s a yearlong program focused on long-term changes and lasting results.
In the time it has been offered, more than 200 people have participated at Vanderbilt.
Each year the CDC requests documentation from participating programs that demonstrates success at weight reduction and session attendance, along with other key measures. The recognition is based on demonstrated success of the program.
“This designation is reserved for programs that have effectively delivered a quality, evidence-based program that meets all of the standards for CDC recognition,” said Ann Albright, Ph.D., director of the Division of Diabetes Translation of the CDC, in a letter informing VUMC of the recognition.
“The sustained success of your lifestyle change program makes an invaluable contribution to the prevention of Type 2 diabetes, both in your community and nationally.
“You and your colleagues should be extremely proud of this accomplishment. It is programs like yours that are turning the tide in the fight against the epidemic of Type 2 diabetes.”
Vanderbilt’s program is one of only five in the state to receive full recognition from the CDC, and the only employee-based program to do so.
In research published in the journal Diabetes Care earlier this year, researchers noted that nearly 15,000 people had participated in the program nationally.
“During the first four years, the National DPP has achieved widespread implementation of the lifestyle change program to prevent Type 2 diabetes, with promising early results,” the researchers said.
“This recognition represents the hard work of our staff at Health Plus, as well as the success and dedication of our employees who have participated in the program and improved their health,” said Mary Yarbrough, M.D., MPH, executive director of Faculty and Staff Health and Wellness.
For more information about the National Diabetes Prevention Program, go to its website at https://www.cdc.gov/diabetes/prevention/index.html.
For more information about Vanderbilt’s program for employees, go to https://healthandwellness.vanderbilt.edu/news/2014/05/diabetes-prevention-program/.
