On 8 March 2017, the IMU’s School of Pharmacy and IMU Alumni hosted a Continuous Professional Development (CPD) talk in collaboration with the Malaysian Pharmaceutical Society- Young Pharmacist Chapter (MPS-YPC). Two healthcare professionals provided a brief talk on the Management of Type 2 Diabetes Mellitus. The first speaker, Jivanraj, is a clinical pharmacist from Hospital Kuala Lumpur. He is also part of the hospital’s Endocrine team as a pharmacist at the Diabetes Medication Therapy Adherence Clinic (DMTAC). The second speaker, Lee Ching Li, is a lecturer at the IMU. She is a dietician who provides her dietary counselling service at both, the IMU Healthcare Medical Clinic and Hospital Tuanku Ja’afar Seremban. Lee Ching Li is also with a member of the Malaysian Dietician Association and Malaysian Diabetes Educators Society. The audience included A/Prof Mohd Zulkefeli bin Mat Jusoh, Dean of School of Pharmacy, IMU, and Lim Shi Hao, Chairman of the MPS-YPC, various other professors, Pharmacy interns, and students from other healthcare courses.
Jivanraj commenced his session on pharmaceutical management of Type II Diabetes Management, titled ‘Oral Antibiotics- New Options, Old Scenarios’. He discussed the current and new drugs available in the management of diabetics. 
He started off with a brief overview on the appropriate initiation of oral anti-diabetics and insulin therapy for patients. He also discussed the new HbA1c targets and clinical practice guidelines, and then proceeded to discuss current drugs used to treat diabetic patients alongside the side effects of the medications. He concluded his talk with a summary and an emphasis on selecting the best treatment based on patient-related factors. 
Lee Ching Li’s forte, on the other hand, was on the appropriate nutrition and diet for patients with Type 2 Diabetes Mellitus. She elaborated on the type of diet best suited to reduce blood glucose levels and for weight control. She discussed about exchanging portions of current diet with healthier options to control the carbohydrate intake. As an experienced nutritionist, she shared her knowledge for an effective patient consultation. Lee highlighted that the most suitable diet plan for any patient is one that the patient can follow through. She also discussed techniques on educating patients to choose a healthier diet, which included the concept of a ‘Healthy Plate’ and measurement of their food portions. Throughout her sharing, she reminded the audience on the importance of diet in the management of Type 2 Diabetes Mellitus. Following the informative sharing session, the floor was opened for a Question & Answer session. The audience was very enthusiastic in discussing many of the points our professional speaker had brought up during their sharing. The event concluded with Jivanraj and Lee Ching Li being presented with a token of appreciation by A/Prof Zulkefeli, Dean of Pharmacy, IMU, and Lim Shi Hao, Chairman of MPS-YPC.
Feedback from the audience indicated that they perceived the talk as being very informative and helpful for their career as future pharmacists. They appreciated the information on updates in the therapeutic management of Type 2 Diabetes Mellitus and the diet and nutritional recommendation for diabetic patients; the diet management was most interesting as it was something out of curriculum but very relevant to their course.
As a medical student, myself, the talk aided me in keeping up to date with the current management of Type 2 Diabetes Mellitus. Moreover, the talk made me realise that combining pharmacological and nutritional treatment would offer a more holistic approach for patients with diabetes. The event was indeed enriching and informative for all. Prepared by Renuka Muralidharan
