Groups gather to fight diabetes – The Salinas Californian

Jeff Mitchell, Community Health Reporting Project Published 4:27 p.m. PT March 28, 2017 | Updated 6 hours ago

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Realizing that the Salinas Valley, like much of America, is about to get hit with a tsunami of pre-diabetes and diabetes cases, a handful of local healthcare organizations joined Tuesday to fight the chronic disease that shortens lives and regularly robs people of limbs through amputation and dims or extinguishes their eyesight.

The countywide initiative is a partnership among Salinas Valley Memorial Healthcare System, Community Health Innovations, Montage Health, Monterey Independent Physicians Association and Central Coast YMCA.

The announcement was made at the Salinas Valley Medical Clinic Diabetes & Endocrine Center currently under construction at the Primecare Medical offices on Abbott Street.

The Diabetes Initiative was started in 2015 by Community Hospital, SVMH, Community Health Innovations (CHI) and the Monterey Bay Independent Physician Association to move the dial on diabetes.

The driver behind todays event is the bold effort by the partners to work together to move the dial on diabetes in Monterey County," said Dr. Anthony Chavis, chief medical officer of Montage Health, parent company of Community Hospital of the Monterey Peninsula.

The effort comes not a minute too soon. According to the UCLA Center for Health Policy Research Chronic Disease Program, diabetes and pre-diabetes in Monterey County affect:

57% of the population has diabetes and pre-diabetes

28,000, or 12% of the population, have diabetes

105,000, or 45% of the population, have pre-diabetes.

In 2015, about 13.8% of Monterey County Hispanics/Latinos reported having been diagnosed with diabetes, compared to 4.8% of Whites and 4.4% Asians (CHIS).

The partners supporting the initiative have increased the number of endocrinologists serving the community. The YMCA introduced a yearlong Pre-Diabetes Program for people considered pre-diabetes or are on the verge of becoming pre-diabetic.

This year, SVMHS is opening an expanded Diabetes & Endocrine Center in Salinas with a state-of-the-art kitchen and education room. Also this year, Montage Health is opening a new medical office building at Ryan Ranch ideally suited for diabetes care.

Construction of the expanded Salinas Valley Medical Clinic Diabetes & Endocrine Center will be completed this summer. The new Diabetes & Endocrine Center will be located on the second floor of the PrimeCare office building at 355 Abbott St.in Salinas.

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Groups gather to fight diabetes - The Salinas Californian