LITTLE CURRENT—The annual Wiikwemkoong Annual Diabetes Conference has always been a popular gathering for those living with diabetes to learn more about the disease that disproportionately impacts Indigenous peoples but is a scourge afflicting many communities.
“This is my sixth year having this conference,” said Sue-Ann Oshkabewisens, the Naandwechige-gamig (Wiikwemkoong Health Centre) Aboriginal Diabetes Initiative Worker. “Every year we have it in November on Diabetes Wellness Awareness Month. We try to have it in November and the way we set the themes, or the way we have our layout, is every year or at the end we ask everybody in attendance what they would like to see for next year. So, next year’s conference is going to be based on what they give me back for feedback this year.”
“We’re trying to rotate within communities not always necessarily having it in Wiikwemkoong because we do have community members living here,” Ms. Oshkabewisens explained as to why the conference was held in Little Current this year. “We have community members living everywhere, but we want to make sure that the programs or the facilitators that we do have are people that you can access within Manitoulin Island and to make sure that they know that there is support in their communities as well.”
The conference began with a healthy breakfast, opening prayers and remarks, followed by a series of talks that included ‘What is Diabetes’ with Kendra, ‘Flow and Glow’ with Denise, ‘High Blood Pressure’ with Christina, ‘Eye Health’ with Caitlyn and ‘Healthy Eating’ with dietician Laurel before lunch and then ‘Foot Care’ with Taylor McGregor and ‘Mental Health and Wellness’ with Naomi after the meal.
“Whether you’re newly diagnosed or a veteran diabetic, medicine is always changing,” noted Ms. Oshkabewisens. “There’s always things that you need to learn, and you should learn and pass on that knowledge to people who are curious, because when I was newly diagnosed 17 years ago, diabetes was taboo. You wouldn’t tell anybody you were a diabetic, but here, now, I share my story openly, and when I’ve done that, I’ve actually had two people make changes in their life.” She shared that she had one individual client who dropped 73 pounds.
“Just by learning things, coming to workshops, you learn a lot about how to manage your diabetes,” she said. “A lot of times, when we go to doctor’s appointments, it’s ‘how’s your sugar? How are you doing’ then it’s ‘okay, get the next patient’. You have a 45-minute window and by the time you get in with the doctor, you got maybe 10 minutes. I always tell people, learn what you can, and ask, ask questions. It’s your health—it’s your responsibility, you have to make sure you’re okay.”
