The CEAD team, in collaboration with the Centre for Community Epidemiology and Tropical Medicine (CECOMET) has started field work in rural Esmeraldas. Last October, data collection was carried out in different communities of Rio Santiago including Angostura, Picadero, Selva Alegre, Colón Eloy, San Antonio and Valdez.
In these communities, the two main phases of the project have started simultaneously: the population-based survey to analyse diabetes prevalence and chronic disease risk factors and the cohort study involving people with type 2 diabetes to evaluate comprehensive diabetes healthcare. Those involved are collaborating to try to help improve healthcare for people with diabetes in community health services and to carry out activities to prevent the development of chronic diseases.
Finally, although the team has had to adapt to the “new normal” by taking the necessary measures to carry out the work safely for both the research team and the participants, progress has been made in the research.
In addition, the reception has been very good from the communities and the people who were selected to participate showed great interest. Another of the consequences of the pandemic has been the abandonment of chronic diseases that are still present and that condition people’s lives. Therefore, the project comes at a decisive moment to stimulate innovations in the prevention and treatment of chronic diseases in a context of resources depleted by a crisis of such magnitude as the one we are currently experiencing.
The CEAD research team is grateful for the welcome and participation of the people included in the study and we expect the same response from future participants. We also hope to achieve greater visibility of the needs of the community in order to improve their situation.
THANK YOU FOR YOUR COLLABORATION!
