Diabetes in Summit County

By: Katie Sobiech

Here is our first story to give the broad overview from a Community Focus Group’s point of view.

We started with Community Health. Several groups work together to address broad health concerns for Summit County, including the Summit County Health Department, Austen Bio-Innovation Institute of Akron (ABIA), and others in the areas where they specialize. We didn’t know what we would find.

We quickly learned that diabetes is one of the largest health concerns in our area that is not very adequately addressed (as you will see in the following story). It is amazing that something that seems so common could be such a big problem.

Diabetes in Summit County is a very big issue and we as a community are very far from having an adequate response to it. Therefore the story didn’t take the shape we hoped it would. But, as one of my philosophy professors used to say, “It is better to know than not to know.” So, even though no one we could find has yet imagined a comprehensive response to diabetes in our community, here is the overview of what we know.

Be informed!
Scott Myers

Everyone is affected by diabetes in one way or another. If you don’t have it, maybe a loved one or friend does.

Whether you suffer from diabetes, or a loved one does, it is a life-changing disease. From the dietary and lifestyle changes it demands to the mental toll it takes, it’s not easy to deal with.