The Children with Diabetes conference – Friends for Life 2011 – is fast approaching and sanofi-aventis U.S. diabetes is excited to be at this year’s event! On Wednesday, July 6th, we will participate in a day of discussions by hosting a focus group on “Transition in Care: Sewing the Net Before Letting Go”. A small group discussion begins at 9 a.m. and is open to children living with type 1 diabetes and their parents who are registered for the conference.

Don’t you just love the 4th of July? What a great summer day on which to celebrate our freedom with family, friends, fireworks, and best of all – food! For years, my husband and I have hosted an annual “kaboomfest” party inclusive of (rockin’) live music. When guests ask what they should bring, we simply tell them “bring what you like and like what you bring.” The only downside to this approach is that, amongst all the appetizing dishes, it can be a challenge to find a healthy option.

On June 9, 2011, Dennis Urbaniak, vice president of sanofi-aventis U.S. Diabetes, announced the “sanofi-aventis U.S. Innovation Challenge: Data, Design, Diabetes” at the National Institute of Health’s Health Data Initiative Forum. The challenge integrates open data with a human-centered view into diabetes, and will award $220,000 in total prize money. The initiative encourages participants to consult and make use of the data made available at healthdata.gov.

This morning, Robert Henry, MD, President of Medicine and Science of the American Diabetes Association, took us on a trip down memory lane to demonstrate just how far the diabetes community has come in its understanding of the disease. He recalled the days when only beef, pork and combined beef-pork insulin in glass syringes were available. Since then, there have been countless discoveries and developments that have improved the lives of people with diabetes. This is duly noted in how the Standards of Medical Care in Diabetes – the bible for diabetes care – went from four pages and 20 references in 1999 to 51 pages and 395 references today. It truly is an exciting time for the field of diabetes with so many scientific breakthroughs emerging. Just think someday soon, people with diabetes may have access to an artificial pancreas.

Between the San Diego Padres’ 11-2 win against the Atlanta Braves last night and the thousands of meeting attendees roaming the streets, San Diego is buzzing. Here at the convention center, my colleagues and I had another exciting and enlightening day. We’ve already highlighted the use of social media at the meeting and mobile health technology, so let’s focus on a couple of central themes in this wrap-up: changes in technology, education and diabetes in the elderly.

One of the things I like best about the diabetes community is the absolute embrace of technology, in all its forms, in improving our understanding and management of the disease. The DOC isn’t just up on the latest medical technology (though they are), they are also on the cutting edge of social media and other technologies. This isn’t a coincidence, of course. Everything we know suggests that more data – everywhere from a continuous glucose monitor to an online community – offers the opportunity to improve care and improve outcomes.

Looking over my schedule before I arrived here in San Diego, I knew there was no way I could take in the whole meeting. There is simply too much going on. The ADA says there are 300 hours of symposia, current issues and oral presentations over the course of the meeting, but – unfortunately – still only 24 hours in a day. And now that I’m on the ground, I’m even more overwhelmed … in a good way.

Hooray! We made it to sunny San Diego. The energy in the Convention Center is contagious. Everyone is happily registering and attending the first batch of sessions. For us, a great way to start the meeting was attending the Diabetes Educators Preventing Diabetes session as we recognize the importance of the diabetes educator in improving patient care.

Tomorrow morning, I will be jumping on a plane to San Diego to attend the American Diabetes Association’s 71st Scientific Sessions, the single-largest annual meeting for the diabetes community (doctors, researchers, patients, educators, etc.). In fact, many of my colleagues will be in attendance, given it’s the place where breakthroughs (large and small) are unveiled and where top public health officials talk through the best ways of fighting a disease where both hope and complexity seem to increase each year.

Later this week, the American Diabetes Association will bring together people within the diabetes community from across the United States at its annual conference—this year in San Diego, California. I am very excited to have the opportunity to participate in the event along with other sanofi-aventis representatives.