Hello everyone! Our names are Beth, Grace, and Haley, and we are students in the MA Public History field this year at Western University. This semester, our class took on a social media takeover for BHNHS. For our section, we were tasked with creating posts that focus on profiles of researchers and highlighting the artifacts in the new exhibit to celebrate how far diabetes research has come in the last 50 years.
We began by looking at some of the major developments that were marked on a timeline of Diabetes Canada research that had been given to us by Grant Maltman and Sadie-Lyn Bieman, the amazing staff at Banting House that worked with us on this project. We quickly noticed that there were three general categories that we could split these events into, and each of us took on a different section to create posts about: developments in research (Beth), developments in technology (Grace), and developments in understanding the social factors that can impact people with diabetes (Haley). With this as our starting point, our research led us to three or four major breakthroughs in each of these sections. We chose these topics as the subjects of our social media posts.
Beth’s Reflections:
I chose my topics to highlight significant developments in diabetes management research over a broad time period. I wanted to recognize events that happened decades ago, as well as more recent discoveries, to show the continuity of the research. The glycemic index (a tool used to rank the amount that different foods can raise blood sugars) was developed in the early 1980s, and Dr. Timothy Kieffer’s protocol (to create insulin-producing cells from stem cells) was established in the 2010s, so these two events served almost as bookends for the period. The research of the Edmonton Protocol (transplanting insulin-producing islet cells into people living with type 1 diabetes) spread throughout this time: the work began in the 1970s, the first transplants were completed in the late 1980s-1990s, what is considered the first “successful” transplant was completed in 2000, and for the past 25 years the program has continued successfully and made modifications to improve its results. I thought that all three of these events showed the important work of researchers in Canada to discover important sources of treatment for diabetes.
After my research was complete, I felt that the greater challenge was in summarizing the topics to fit in a few brief social media posts. There was so much information on this work that I really struggled to cut it short; the first captions I wrote for the posts were paragraphs long, and I realized I needed to drastically reduce the amount I had written if I wanted anyone to bother reading it. After a few drafts to cut it down, I was happy with it, and glad I had this experience to learn a new form of writing!
Grace’s Reflections:
I chose my topic because I was fascinated by the relationship between technology and diabetes. I was also particularly drawn to this topic because I have distinct memories of sitting with my grandfather while he used his glucometer to test his glucose levels every night after dinner. In doing my research for these posts, I was amazed by the ability of modern technology and how rudimentary previous versions of Insulin pumps, the artificial pancreas, and glucometer once were. I believed it was important to highlight the evolution of these technologies. The insulin pump, in its earliest form, which was first introduced in 1983, was a backpack-style device that would have hindered daily life greatly. Both insulin pumps and the artificial pancreas are now lightweight devices that allow diabetics to go about their daily lives fairly seamlessly. I found the technology behind glucometers the most interesting because they went from urine testing, which was only able to be done by doctors in their offices, to using blood in the 1960s. Eventually, by the 1980s, an at-home glucometer was available, which quickly developed in the next 20 years to a relatively pain-free process. Today, glucose monitoring, insulin pumps, and the artificial pancreas, through the amazing technology that they utilize, allow diabetics to live life to the fullest.
The next step in the process of creating these posts was cutting down the information. I too struggled with choosing what information was the most important without overloading the reader with technological jargon. I wanted to keep the posts interesting and attention-grabbing, so I tried to come up with eye-catching slogans for each post. Ultimately, I enjoyed this project because it made me research things that I’ve known about in passing. After all, I have family members who use them, but I would never have thought to learn more about them on my own.
Haley’s Reflections:
I chose my topic because I wanted to explore the social factors that influence diabetes risk, research, and treatment. While Dr. Booth, Dr. Dean, and Dr. Harris have all made significant contributions to diabetes healthcare, what interested me most about them was that their research has challenged previous beliefs surrounding who is at risk of developing diabetes and how it may be treated and even prevented. Dr. Booth’s research shows that having access to walkable neighbourhoods can help reduce diabetes risk, and that our health is largely shaped by the surroundings we live in. Dr. Dean’s research revealed that Type 2 diabetes was not an adult-only disease as previously believed, but also impacts young people, particularly those in Indigenous communities, showing how health can be linked to historical traumas. Dr. Harris has worked to enhance diabetes care in Indigenous communities by working with them to meet their unique health needs. The work of these researchers shows us that treating diabetes isn’t just about individuals – it’s about communities. It’s about creating healthier environments, understanding how history shapes health, and how working together can help give everyone a healthier future.
My biggest challenge for this assignment was to present what I learned about diabetes research in a social-media format, as I have little experience with either. I tried to come up with caption introductions that are eye-catching and can apply to many aspects of health, not just diabetes. I am glad that this assignment has helped me learn how to present academic research to public audiences!
In conclusion, all three of us faced the same challenges when it came to deciding what to do with the plethora of information that came from our research. Figuring out what to cut and what to keep for our posts was probably the hardest part of this project. However, I think that this project was interesting for all of us because it made us think outside the box as well as introduced us to a topic that was outside our comfort zones. This experience will be important for us as we set off in our public history careers!