Nursing Career Option: Certified Diabetes Educator
Although the majority of people who become nurses do so because they like providing direct care to their patients, others prefer a more indirect route–the area of patient education. A career as a certified diabetes educator, or CDE, allows you to do just that.
With obesity a growing epidemic in the west, more people than ever are suffering from type II diabetes. To help deal with this epidemic, more nurse-educators are needed. A certified diabetes educator takes part in a career that is increasingly in demand. Plus, you have something of a choice: You can decide whether to work in a hospital setting, for a private physician, or with a public health department.
A diabetes educator can work one-on-one with her patients, teaching them how to use blood-sugar meters, how to use insulin, and how to properly take medications. These educators also help diabetes sufferers in making changes to their daily diet.
Although you might enjoy working one-on-one with a patient, you might also find a career in public health enjoyable. This could still include some work with individual patients, but would also entail making presentations and sponsoring community education events.
Certification for becoming a CDE comes from the National Certification Board for Diabetes Educators (NCBDE). To become a CDE you must first work for a minimum of two years in the field of diabetes education; you also must have a minimum of 1000 yours of diabetes education practice.
For a complete list of qualifications for Diabetes Educators, see the National Certification Board for Diabetes Educators (NCBDE) and their FAQ.
Passing an exam is also required to become certified as a diabetes educator. You can find places giving these exams throughout the country and at all different times of year.
After you’ve become a CDE, it’s important that you keep your certification current . You do this by taking part in continuing education as it becomes available each year. If you can’t find where courses are conducted, the certification board will help you locate one near you.
Becoming a certified diabetes educator can be a considerable investment, particularly of time. You can expect to spend a couple of years getting your initial certification. However, it’s worth the investment. For the foreseeable future, as a CDE, you should have no shortage of work opportunities, and you can usually decide which setting you’ll work in. Plus this is a career that will offer you much fulfillment.
Salary for a CDE is decent, too. You can expect to make somewhere between $43,000 and $63,000, depending on location, experience and other factors. As always, the amount of training you get in the way of workshops and seminars will also play a role in salary determination.
If you’re interested in the field of health education, then consider a career specifically in diabetes education. It’s exciting, in-demand and pays well.
Nursing Education is a great career choice. See more information on Nurse Educator. Job Listings for Diabetes Nurse Educator.
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Thanks so much Melissa!
Great site here. Lots of websites like yours cover subjects that arent found in magazines. I dont know how we got on 15 years ago with just magazines and newspapers.
nice post