The Diabetes Program was without a Registered Dietitian for about 1.5 years.  Angie Watson was hired in latter October 2018 to work exclusively with the diabetes program.  As she settled in, participation and initial visits increased.  

In addition, referral sources increased.  One of the physicians at ECU (where Angie had left) continued to refer to our program until a new dietitian was hired. 

Due to Covid, Telehealth initiatives were implemented, which gave another option to individuals. During 2020, Bertie County started referring their patients to our facility. Part of the rationale behind this new referral source was that we had offered telehealth services.  While this platform was available, many participants still wanted to participate in-person. 

Part of the decline seen in 2021 may be due to decreased referrals from Bertie County.  We are not certain why referrals have decreased at this time. 

2023/24-

In 2024, our DSMES program solidified its foundation, successfully achieving recognition and establishing a new, stable leadership structure. We hired our temporary employee to assume a permanent leadership role as the Diabetes Community Care Coordinator (DCCC) and site coordinator. This new DCCC, along with our Registered Dietitian and nurse, resumed teaching all four core classes on a regular basis.

While classes had brief, strategic pauses during peak health promotion seasons (April–May and October–November) to accommodate educator schedules, client access to initial assessments was consistently maintained. The program also saw robust community engagement, with a successful monthly support group and our annual Diabetes Awareness Event in November achieving its largest attendance to date. This progress demonstrates the program's successful transition and a strengthened team dedicated to serving our community.

Pitt Partners for Health

ECU Health

Bernstein

Prevent Blindness North Carolina

Provider Offices within the community 

ECU Women's Basketball team

ECU Department of Public Health 

Bertie County Regional Health Association 

Telehealth during Covid

Relationships with providers

Having experienced staff who can make recommendations to providers

Community outreach 

Diabetes Support Group may contribute to self referrals 

Pursue administrative support to assist with referrals.

Continue relationship with providers and identify barriers to referring 

Actively promote program to employees