About Us
Global Diabetes Initiatives (GDI) is a fully registered non-profit organization providing support and advocacy for people with diabetes. As a global health organization, GDI is dedicated to improving the health and lives of people with diabetes within the UK community and in the Developing World, mainly Cameroon.
We believe that a Diabetes Free Society is possible. And while waiting to achieve it, we work with persons living with diabetes to help them overcome the challenges that make their health condition less manageable. These challenges include limited knowledge of diabetes, lack of medication and a proper diet due to poverty, and non-inclusion in accessing diabetes-related services.
Ours is an organization that supports diversity, tolerance, and inclusion and empowers every person to:
- Fulfil their health potential regardless of their background.
- Live a diabetes-free life or positively manage the condition.
- Become a proactive member in creating a healthier community.
Our Mission
Promote inclusive diabetes care and support and foster a culture of health and well-being in our communities by encouraging people to nurture their health and helping them realize when their health is at risk, thereby improving overall community health.
Our Vision
We dream a diabetes free society where people have the necessary knowledge to care for themselves through healthy eating, exercise, maintaining a healthy weight, and avoiding health-risking behaviours like smoking.
GDI Objectives
To help people living with diabetes manage their condition and those without it stay healthy, we:
- Advocate for improved facilities, affordable diabetes medication and testing equipment, and better services.
- Support, educate, and encourage people with diabetes and their families.
- Raise awareness and sensitize the public on diabetes; what it is, the signs and symptoms, and the risk factors, among others.
- Provide guidance, supply educational materials, and offer advocacy services to diabetes patients.
- Create community support among persons with diabetes when chronic consequences are imminent by providing platforms where they can exercise, share experiences with people they value, and maintain quality of life.
Goals
We strive to:
- Educate the community on how to manage Diabetes.
- Help the community access the needed care and support.
- Help persons with diabetes manage the condition so they can stay out of the hospital.
What we do
Advocacy
We are an advocacy voice for diabetic migrants in the UK. We remind decision-makers in the national health system that diabetes is a real pandemic requiring immediate action. In addition, we lobby for better treatment and access to essential diabetes medication.
Mentoring Service
We use educational and fun ways to alleviate the stresses and hardships that come with managing a long-term health condition like diabetes. These initiatives include recreational activities, support and integration of new members, education, advice, and guidance.
Counseling service
GDI has knowledgeable staff with first-hand experience in diabetes who offer emotional support and encouragement on general diabetes management concerns. We refer those with serious issues for professional help. GDI does not provide medical advice.
Support Groups
Support groups are one of GDI’s core assets. The groups provide a safe platform where people with diabetes can freely share experiences and concerns and receive support from others in similar situations. The meetings take place in the members’ homes on a rotating chair basis.
Annual Symposiums
We conduct annual symposiums on World Diabetes Day in November to create extensive awareness about diabetes. Our partners, stakeholders and other supporting organizations join us on these occasions.
Workshops
We host workshops where experts can speak to the latest diabetic therapies and management approaches, among other topics.
Sensitize
We organise walk and talk sessions in a park 3 days a week. This is a lifestyle modification initiative geared at promoting type 2 diabetes prevention and management measures.
Exercise is Paramount!
We reassure persons affected by diabetes that the condition can be managed and that, with the right information and motivation, diabetic persons can live full lives.