Module 10: Lifestages
This module provides a basic review of diabetes at three important stages of life:
- For women: gestational diabetes or preexisting type 1 or type 2 diabetes during pregnancy
- For children and adolescents: type 1 and type 2 diabetes
Included in the information is an overview of these life situations with a focus on interactions within a pharmacy.
In your practice, you will encounter parents with young children who have diabetes as well as teenagers who are starting to exert their authority and manage their own diabetes. It is important to realize that children and adolescents with diabetes are not little adults; they need different management strategies and lots of support.
Objectives - Pregnancy
You have completed this module when you are able to:
- Describe the pathophysiology of gestational diabetes;
- List the risk factors for gestational diabetes;
- Describe management strategies for gestational diabetes;
- Describe future implications of gestational diabetes for mother and baby;
- Describe the reasons for planned pregnancy in women who have diabetes, and
- Describe management strategies for women with type 1 and type 2 diabetes who become pregnant.
Objectives - Children and adolescents
You have completed this module when you are able to:
- Describe the psychosocial impact on the family of the diagnosis of diabetes in a child;
- Describe the principles of management of diabetes in children, and
- Describe the difference between type 1 and type 2 diabetes in children with reference to management and future implications.
To enhance your learning, you may also wish to refer to the "Type 1 and type 2 diabetes in children and adolescents" and "Diabetes in special populations" sections of the Canadian Pharmacists Journal's supplement on Diabetes. (CPJ 2009;142[SUPPL 1])