The workgroup assessed the best ways to translate what we know about preventing and controlling diabetes, identified ways to address the gaps in what we know, and developed strategies to eliminate the disparity in the burden of diabetes among selected racial and ethnic minority populations, including Hispanics. CDC's efforts to eliminate the diabetes disparity in Hispanics are focused on improving what we know about the burden of diabetes in this population, developing national strategies and state-based diabetes control programs to respond to the challenge, and building partnerships to help inform our efforts and broaden our impact. CDC joins with state and territorial health departments and other partners to focus efforts on all populations at increased risk for diabetes and its complications. CDC provides leadership for a coordinated, multifaceted program to effect changes and improvements in systems that care for and support people with diabetes. CDC's national program goals are to increase awareness and education about diabetes, promote early detection of diabetes and treatment of its complications, improve quality of care, and enhance access to diabetes care by improving and expanding services.
Priority is on reaching high-risk and disproportionately burdened populations.
Core programs do not operate state-wide but serve as a framework on which states build more comprehensive programs. In August 1997, CDC received a list of strategic options from our Expert Consultant group culminating a two-year planning process on how to effectively reach and reduce the burden of diabetes within Latino populations. CDC developed a formal response to the workgroup product and initiated several key efforts. The organizations will facilitate the delivery of culturally and linguistically appropriate NDEP prevention and control messages through trusted and valued community-based delivery channels and intervention approaches. Several planning meetings have been held to date.