Diabetes Center of Excellence
Under the co-direction of David M. Harlan, MD, and Dale L. Greiner, Ph.D., the Diabetes Center of Excellence (DCOE) multi-disciplinary team is working together to understand the root cause(s) of diabetes (type 1 and type 2) and to apply that knowledge to develop therapies to improve the quality of life for patients with the disease. The ultimate goal of that basic research is to uncover the clues required to prevent the disease for those at risk, and cure those already diagnosed. DCOE investigators are also pursuing practical, clinically oriented research to more effectively execute therapies currently known to be effective and yet are not widely applied. Indeed, while such outcomes-focused research can seem mundane, those efforts can have immediate impact on the estimated 50,000 individuals within the UMass vicinity currently living with diabetes, and as a model for improved care throughout our nation. The UMass clinical efforts were recently described in a Forbes magazine article (April 12, 2012) as “the future of health care, right before your eyes.”
With those goals as our focus, the DCOE Mission Statement is to:
1. Provide care to people with diabetes by coordinating a collaborative network to deliver comprehensive, patient-centered, high-quality, “cradle-to- the-grave, eyes-to-toes, with a heart” treatment.
2. Educate/train motivated individuals to provide outstanding diabetes clinical care, and to pursue and disseminate clinically relevant research.
3. Conduct the research to lessen disease impact and work toward the diabetes cure.
Succinctly stated, DCOE clinical and research team members strive to build a patient-centered clinical care system that provides the most up-to-date therapies, while also exploring new treatment methods; build on the strengths of the basic research already underway; and promote translational research to bring promising laboratory advances quickly and safely into clinical practice.