Back in a February '07 post, I described an initiative by New York drug store chain Duane Reade. The chain had announced it was opening a free diabetes center. The idea was to drum up business by meeting customer demand for diabetes-related advice and services. At the time, I thought it was an interesting story - perhaps the sign of a new trend on the rise. And definitely a sign of the commercial clout wielded by diabetics.

A few months down the road and it looks like the concept has really taken off. A Duane Reade press release has announced that the center will be expanding its services to keep pace with demand. Yep. The Duane Reade Diabetes Resource Center will now be offering space in its support groups to anyone from the NY metro area, not just to those who had already enrolled in their education classes. Although registration is required, those educational and support group sessions are all totally free. Partial funding for the center comes from Novo Nordisk.

If you live in the NY area and are interested, call 1-866-913-8486 or email brodink@duanereade.com.

I live in Florida. This morning I woke up to a big story on the front page of the local paper about the arrival of hurricane season 2006 and the need for citizens to be prepared. Wow, Hurricane Season 2006, you got here so soon. Seems appropriate to blog about something hurricane related...

A few days ago I blogged a post about a foundation now based in Baton Rouge, LA, that is working hard to provide assistance to diabetics, many of whom were affected by Hurricane Katrina. I remarked that there seem to be few stories in the media lately about diabetics and Katrina. Looks like I spoke too soon, because here's another one: Mississippi's Sun Herald reports that the show dLife is honoring KC Arnold, a Mississippi nurse practitioner, for her contribution towards helping diabetics in the wake of Katrina. Arnold has been named one of dLife's "Top 10 Making a Difference in Diabetes."

After Katrina hit coastal Mississippi back in August 2005, Arnold set up a temporary health clinic in a church. She has gone on to open her own practice, the Diabetes Center.