Maui Health Hosts 5th Annual Diabetes Awareness Free Community Health Fair

Maui Health hosts their 5th Annual Diabetes Awareness Event – a community health fair to celebrate World Diabetes Day – on Thursday, Nov. 14, 2019, from 4 to 6:30 p.m. at Maui Memorial Medical Center.

Maui Health Diabetes Coordinator Jolly Uclaray teaches guests at a recent diabetes event about healthy portion control for diabetes prevention and management. Courtesy photo.

The free event will include informational booths, entertainment, prizes and feature guest speakers from the Maui medical community lending their expertise on diabetes prevention and management.  The event schedule is as follows:

4 to 5 p.m. Maui Memorial Medical Center Courtyard
Informational booths featuring various health and wellness organizations
Entertainment
Complimentary refreshments
Enter-to-win prize drawings

5 to 6:30 p.m. Maui Memorial Medical Center Auditorium
Guest speakers:
Dr. Joshua Farrell-Starbuck, MD, Hospitalist
Dr. Robert Connaughton, MD, Vascular & General Surgeon
Andrea DeRoode, RD, Clinical Dietitian
Seth Abdullah, Y-DPP Director, YMCA
Patient Testimonials

Complimentary valet parking will also be offered. The event is free and open to the public.

According to the Hawaiʻi Department of Health, in Hawaiʻi, 442,000 adults have prediabetes, and two in three of these adults don’t know that they have it. Without intervention, 15% to 30% of those with prediabetes will develop type 2 diabetes within five years. Fortunately, prediabetes can be reversed, meaning that if you have it, there are things that you can do to prevent yourself from getting type 2 diabetes.

“Many of my patients tell me that ‘they wished they had known more about prediabetes’ before they were diagnosed with type 2 diabetes,” said Jolly Uclaray, Maui Memorial Medical Center diabetes educator. “So we work really hard to provide as much education as possible around ways to prevent diabetes, as well as ways to reverse prediabetes. Events like this, with the organizations that participate, are vital to the short- and long-term health of our community.”

In addition to the annual community event, Maui Health System also offers free monthly classes that are open to the public. The Diabetes Support Group meets on the second Wednesday of every month at 5 p.m. at Maui Memorial Medical Center.

The class provides education, skills, and other resources to diabetes patients and their families. Each meeting focuses on a different topic and special guest speakers provide specialized expertise on daily management and ways to prevent diabetes.

For more information on Diabetes Support Group, visit the Maui Memorial Medical Center Facebook page under the Events tab. For event information contact Diabetes Coordinator Jolly Uclaray at 442-5773.