Diabetes Care Program of Nova Scotia
The Diabetes Care Program of Nova Scotia (DCPNS) is responsible to support integrated approaches to the prevention and management of diabetes across the province for Nova Scotia Health (NSH) and Izaak Walton Killam (IWK) Health.
DCPNS is a program of the Primary Health Care and Chronic Disease Management Network at Nova Scotia Health. The program is supported by medical advisors, working groups and committees, and approximately 6.5 full-time equivalent staff positions.
Our Vision | Our Mandate | Our Services | Our History| Patient Education Packages | Website
OUR VISION
Working together, all Nova Scotians living with, affected by, or at risk of developing diabetes are supported to live their healthiest life.
OUR MANDATE
- Standardize high-quality diabetes care in Nova Scotia’s Diabetes Centres
- Support integrated approaches to the prevention and management of Diabetes
- Advise on service delivery models
- Support diabetes health care providers to adopt clinical practice guidelines
- Monitor and share diabetes-related information for Nova Scotia
- Surveillance
- Research
- Quality Improvement
- Program Evaluation
OUR SERVICES
- Diabetes expertise, including program planning and evaluation
- Standardized documentation, statistics keeping, and referral forms
- Guidelines for special populations (e.g., pregnancy, children and youth, elderly residents with diabetes in long-term care facilities, and insulin pump patients) and specific complications/co-morbidities (e.g., hypertension, dyslipidemia, renal impairment, and foot problems)
- Access to new knowledge and knowledge translation through bulletins and workshops
- Enhanced networking across and between programs and provider groups
- Provincial policy and procedures (including exams for insulin dose adjustment) and Diabetes Centre (DC) grants to support quality improvement initiatives
- Access to local, regional, and provincial diabetes data as well as data analysis support and reporting
OUR HISTORY
Established in 1991, the Diabetes Care Program of Nova Scotia (DCPNS) started as one of 9 Provincial Programs funded by the Nova Scotia Department of Health and Wellness.
In its early years, the DCPNS was tasked with standardizing and optimizing the care delivered through Diabetes Centres across the province. This was accomplished through the development of standardized documentation forms for the adult, pediatric, and pregnant populations; development of guideline documents/recommended practice approaches; creation of knowledge transfer/exchange opportunities; as well as implementation of the DCPNS Registry and a common statistics-keeping framework. Efforts have been focused on building and maintaining expertise at the local level (as close to home as possible) where people with diabetes live, work, and play.
KEY PERFORMANCE INDICATORS
2022 – 2027 Action Plan
*Click to enlarge images
