Diabetic Retinopathy Barometer Advocacy Workshop

On 25^th – 26^th July 2016 the International Federation on Ageing (IFA), in partnership with the International Diabetes Federation (IDF) and the International Agency for the Prevention of Blindness (IAPB) convened the Diabetic Retinopathy (DR) Barometer Advocacy Workshop in Berlin, Germany.

The overall goal of the workshop, which is embedded in the findings of the Diabetic Retinopathy Barometer Study, is to help:

Improve the capacity and capability of local and national patient and senior organisations; and
Develop targeted and measurable advocacy strategies and actions that result in better patient access and education.

The many insightful speakers and rich discussions offered valuable information on diabetes, its complications as well as the work that is currently happening on the ground in Europe. All the contributions demonstrated how the many challenges, such as awareness, capacity and health care professional communication, treatment and follow to mention a few can be addressed, to either prevent diabetic eye diseases or support people living with them.

It was apparent through the active dialogue between delegates that further country specific work is needed to prevent and support people living with diabetic eye diseases. The IFA, IDF and IAPB encourage delegates to commit to using the finalised reports from the DR Barometer Study in any future work relating to diabetic eye diseases.

The IFA is committed to helping to build the capacity and capability of others and will continue to update all delegates with timelines for the completion of the reports, and activities in the region.

Please find attached below the presentations, plenary and working group’s discussions and photos.