Healthcare | Tuesday 8 October, 2019 1:05 pm |

For the first time in the United Kingdom, the IJPP (International Journal of Pharmacy Practice), featured Nahdi’s Diabetes Research Paper. Al Nahdi is the first Saudi retail pharmacy to publish diabetes results at this important platform, which is one of the leading journals publishing health services research in the context of pharmacy, pharmaceutical care, medicines and medicines management. The IJPP targets academics, practitioners in healthcare, particularly pharmacy, nursing, medicine and pharmacoepidemiology. IJPP is an essential reading for health services researchers and those involved in health promotion and education.  

 

Within the research paper at the IJPP Al Nahdi Medical Company, the leading pharmacy in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia, highlighted the “Let’s Talk About Diabetes” program that was conducted in collaboration with Joslin Diabetes Center. The program aims to enhance knowledge about the nature of diabetes, as well as disease treatment and management, through educational clinics for diabetic patients within Nahdi pharmacies spread throughout the Kingdom.

 

"Let’s Talk About Diabetes" program consists of four educational counselling sessions, which are 20 minutes each, in a span of two to four months. The sessions will cover the list of sugar medications, laboratory results, glucose monitoring and doctor visits. Al Nahdi Company has allocated 50 pharmacists to the program. The pharmacists have undergone educational courses and obtained accredited certificates in diabetes education and intensive practical training.

 

According to Nahdi research paper that was published at the IJPP, around 415 million adults worldwide have diabetes, according to the International Diabetes Federation. This number is expected to increase to 642 million by 2040. Saudi Arabia is witnessing a significant increase in the prevalence of diabetes (both type 1 and type 2), increasing from 4.3% to 13.4% over the last 30 years. This percentage is divided among 17.0% of men and 16.0% of women. Saudi Arabia is one of the largest and fastest growing countries in the region with an annual growth rate of 2.2%. This population increase, combined with the high prevalence of chronic diseases, has led to increased demand for the health care system.

 

Eng. Yasser Joharji, CEO of Al Nahdi stressed over the importance of adopting a different approach to increase awareness on diabetes, based on spreading knowledge and education to enhance information and familiarity of the nature of diabetes and build confidence about the mechanisms of treating and managing of the disease. “The Nahdi chain of pharmacies are spread across the Kingdom, reaching many communities across all social and economic strata. In addition to our daily contact with a wide range of guests who receive their medicines on a regular basis through us, and all are being targeted as part of the program, “Let’s Talk About Diabetes".

 

“We started our diabetes program in 2015 in collaboration with the Saudi Ministry of Health and the Joslin Diabetes Center, and we recognized the importance of having diabetes education clinics inside our pharmacies. We believe that expanding the use and development of community pharmacies and allowing them to play a similar role in public health centers, will contribute to lower diabetes prevalence rates and other chronic diseases in the Kingdom”, added Eng. Joharji.

 

"Let’s Talk About Diabetes" program, the first of its kind in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia, attracted a wide participation of guests of Al-Nahdi Pharmacies, where 2639 people enrolled in the program, 1582 of them participated in at least one session, while 1137 people completed the program repressing 71.9%. In addition to their participation in the consultation sessions, the participants showed a great willingness to communicate with community pharmacies and to consider pharmacists as a reliable source of information about diabetes.