We facilitated the creation of special teams led by family doctors and nurses who actively communicated with patients, colleagues, and the public about the prevention and control of type 2 diabetes, and primarily about the necessity for everyone, especially people in risk groups, to check their blood sugar levels.
The key message came out of this –
CHECK YOUR BLOOD SUGAR.

We selected 7 family doctors to become leaders of the Diabetes Hunters teams in 5 pilot regions of the project - Rivne, Lviv, Poltava, Dnipro, and Kherson oblasts.

To present the campaign and the "Diabetes Hunters" team in each region, we decided to hold a series of events dedicated to the prevention and early diagnosis of diabetes. To attract the attention of the media, the medical community, and stakeholders, we conducted blood glucose level testing for journalists and residents of the regional center.
‍
On the night of February 24, 2022, our team went to Kherson to do the same. But a full-scale war began in Ukraine.
‍
The war forced the team to reformat their work and focus on helping those who need it most. We went to the regions to check the blood sugar levels of internally displaced persons. This marked the beginning of further screening campaigns, which our "hunters" conducted independently in IDP centers, enterprises, and more.
‍
In a few months of work, the project team tested 1,366 people, of whom 10-12% had elevated blood sugar levels. As expected, these people very rarely or never checked it.

Together with international partners from the Diabetes Disaster Response Coalition, we translated into Ukrainian a guide on insulin substitution in emergencies, which family doctors could use without fear of substituting or prescribing new medications to their patients.
‍
Family doctors needed community support and practical knowledge. This led to the creation of training sessions for family doctors, which the team conducted in Rivne, Lviv, and Poltava. These sessions brought together about 350 doctors into a community that encouraged other doctors to hunt for diabetes alongside our "hunters."

Information materials helped us in this effort – posters for medical institutions and leaflets for family doctors containing useful information and recommendations for people at risk. Additionally, a radio spot in which we urged people to care for their health during the war and check their blood sugar levels.

Together with the team leaders, we created 8 videos that addressed various topics related to diabetes and promoted them on the project's YouTube and Facebook pages.

Together with project partners – the Public Health Center, we created Ukraine's first evidence-based online test, that allows individuals to determine their own or their relatives' risks of developing type 2 diabetes. It is based on the clinical protocol for primary and secondary medical care approved by the Ministry of Health of Ukraine, and thus can be used by family doctors in medical practice.