The Conference Coach™

Carolyn Bradfield

I am going to miss Oprah when she says goodbye next season. Her shows are diverse, educational and have inspired a nation to rediscover the joy of reading. She’s spun off several other shows, most recently The Dr. Oz Show focusing on medical issues. This weekend, I caught up on some older shows and was riveted by Oprah’s show on diabetes.

The show focused on the membership of an African-American church with a very high level of diabetes among the members. Apparently, only 10% of diabetics are born with the disease, with 90% developing it due to lifestyle choices, specifically obesity and diet. Looking at this group, it was clear that the church dinners, fellowship over food and an inactive lifestyle made this group a collection of walking health time bombs.

Dr. Oz showed in a very graphic way what happens when you don’t detect or treat diabetes, common among diabetics who are Type II – those who develop the disease later in life. Sugar not processed correctly by the pancreas builds up in the body, acting like glass shards creating friction and abrasion in the arteries, eyes and other body parts. He showed a woman in the hospital who didn’t treat her disease and is going blind, on dialysis and with multiple amputations, a relative horrific site.

Let’s get back to the church ladies profiled on the show. Despite the ravages of the disease and despite the fact that several members had been already diagnosed with the disease, they were pretty uncommitted to taking their medication or testing their blood sugar. As one of the doctors stated to an older church member, “You are a walking time bomb”. Many of these ladies had lost relatives and friends to the disease, yet seemed un-moved relative to their own health.

What does this mean to me and you? Many of you reading this blog aren’t diabetics, but I’m sure you know someone who is. The statistics are staggering. Dr. Oz stated that there are 80 million people in the U.S. who have been diagnosed with diabetes or are pre-diabetic. The health care costs of managing this group is helping to quickly bankrupt our healthcare system.

There are two things that can reverse this trend. If those diabetic and pre-diabetic patients with Type II diabetes will manage their diet, their waistline and exercise, according to Dr. Oz almost ALL of Type II diabetes can be reversed. Now this will take time and willpower. In the meantime, they can manage their disease by simply testing their blood with a simple finger prick and taking their medication.

But like the church lady, many of these diabetics just don’t comply with this simple process. One of Copper’s customers has come up with a creative way to make sure this happens. Entra Health (www.entrahealthsystems.com) has invented a diabetes meter that will test your blood, upload the results wirelessly into your cell phone and deliver them to a web site. The patient has a profile on the site and the system knows when they are supposed to test themselves. They can be reminded with a simple text.

Personally, I think we should all try and lower the cost of healthcare without waiting for the insurance companies or government to come to our rescue. I try and stay healthy, maintain my weight, and buy my medications at Walmart for $4. Diabetes costs of over $174 billion a year. 90% of that group can become disease free with some lifestyle changes and while they are in the weight loss process, they can test their blood! Here’s the radical thought. If they refuse to manage themselves, I think their premiums should go up to cover a clearly self-inflicted illness. If I were running an insurance company, I would require this type of meter be used and would want to see a report of who complies with testing and who doesn’t.

Companies like Entra Health, a small, innovative organization, should be applauded for their creative approach to a very big health problem. Sometimes a very large problem can be addressed with a very simple solution. What other small companies like Entra Health are out there? I like the odds of taking $174B and cutting that expense way back.

Entra Health, once you’ve captured the testing market for diabetes, maybe you could tackle blood pressure and weight. Imagine if blood pressure meters and weight scales could upload their results! The cost of healthcare is like a huge elephant. And how do you eat an elephant? One bite at a time!

Carolyn Bradfield is the CEO of Copper Conferencing, a leading provider or audio and web conferencing and wrap-around services to enhance customer experience.  To learn more about Copper Conferencing, visit www.copperconferencing.com.