News and Stories
Transforming Pain into Power: Mentors Encourage Young Warriors to Become Advocates
Emmanuel Kisembo and Lwimba Kasongo—who live with type 1 diabetes and sickle cell disease, respectively—are tireless advocates for awareness and education about their conditions. They are members of the NCDI Poverty Network’s Voices for PEN-Plus program and were co-captains last summer at an integrated PEN-Plus camp in Zambia, where they mentored nearly 60 youth with noncommunicable diseases. In this article, they share their lived experience and reflections on mentorship, advocacy, and the power of integration in fostering peer support.
Peer Support a Growing Focus of Noncommunicable Disease Care
With peer support having proved to be a key component of PEN-Plus care, the NCDI Poverty Network is developing an integrated training program for peer educators. “We’ve seen beautiful examples of young people who are unafraid to speak boldly about their condition, to be advocates, to be champions,” said Dr. Colin Pfaff, the Network’s associate director of programs. “They are living successful lives and are examples to others, which has such a powerful impact.”
Type 1 Diabetes Study in Liberia Shows Value of Patient Education and Peer Support
A recently published study found that patient education and peer support helped people living with type 1 diabetes in rural Liberia manage their disease. “Their extra barriers to health,” said Dr. Alma Adler, the Network’s research director, “make it even more critical for patients in low-resource settings to gain both problem-solving skills and a strong clinical understanding of their condition.”
PHOTO GALLERY: Camp Tuli Bonse, Lusaka, Zambia
Photos from the weeklong camp show joy, education, and empowerment, as young people living with type 1 diabetes or sickle cell disease shared experiences, learned about managing their health and, above all, discovered they were not alone.
Clinicians and Peer Educators Share Tools for Diabetes Self-Management
A peer education event in May brought clinicians and community advocates from Liberia, Sierra Leone, and Uganda together for training on type 1 diabetes management and symptoms, leadership, and…building towers out of spaghetti.