Take Control of Your Diabetes
With This Patient Check List

Use this special patient check list to help you take an active role in the treatment of your diabetes and to make sure that you and your doctor pay close attention to any problem areas.

How Often Should  You Visit Your Doctor?

• If you are on insulin, see your doctor every 3-4 months.
• If you are not on insulin, see your doctor every 3-6 months.

Did Your Doctor?

• Talk to you about your exercise habits, diet and current treatment plan?
• Ask what medications you're taking?
• Ask about problems with high or low blood sugar reactions?
• Discuss your home blood sugar test results?
• Check your blood sugar and hemoglobin A1c?  Tell you what your numbers are and what they mean?  Are they below 140 mg/dL and 8% HbA1c?
• Give you a plan for seeing an eye doctor?
• Check your feet with your socks and shoes off?
• Ask what complications or infections you've had and how they were treated?
• Check your skin, especially at the places you inject insulin?
• Take blood for cholesterol tests and urine for protein tests, once a year?

The American Diabetes Association recommends taking action if

• Your pre-meal blood sugar is consistently above 140 mg/dL or
• Your HbA1c is above 8% (HbA1c is your blood sugar average over the past 2-3 months)