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The Importance of Data

Our Data Philosophy

The overall data philosophy of the Changing Diabetes Barometer is that ‘some data is better than no data.’ Although it is still often difficult to get data related to diabetes outcomes, and the data collected from some regions of the world could be considered poor, we believe that sharing any data that is available is an important first step towards establishing a baseline from which progress can be measured.

If we cannot measure diabetes, then we cannot manage it.
- Lise Kingo, Executive V.P and Chief of Staff, Novo Nordisk

The importance of adopting a pragmatic and comprehensive approach to data collection has been embraced by the international community of healthcare professionals and thought leaders, many of whom participate in our Global Changing Diabetes Barometer Advisory Board.

Measurement is Fundamental to Changing Diabetes

The Changing Diabetes Barometer initiative aims to improve the lives of people with diabetes and reduce the costs associated with this progressive chronic disease. The initiative seeks to achieve these goals by inspiring the collection and sharing of important information on the burden of diabetes, and the effectiveness of interventions to combat it. At the core of the Barometer initiative is a message to all those involved in meeting the challenge of diabetes, a call to ‘measure, share, and improve.’

Inspiration can be gained from the role that registries have played for the past 60 years in the area of cancer research and study. The resulting data, which reflects performance in cancer diagnosis and treatment, has led to greater public visibility, as well as demands for improvement and higher standards of care.

We believe that measuring and sharing data on diabetes will lead to propagation of best practices and healthy competition between healthcare professionals, health systems, and even people with diabetes themselves. The initiative is grounded in the belief that data must be collected to show the impact of varying efforts and approaches used to reduce diabetes incidence, diagnose the disease early, and treat it effectively, thus lowering the incidence of diabetes-related complications and early deaths. After all, for any situation to be effectively managed, it must be objectively measured.

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