Diabetic gastroparesis (DG), a variant of stomach paralysis caused by diabetes-related neuropathy in the stomach, is a life changing diagnosis that can render 1 in 10 diabetics completely disabled. Many doctors and emergency room professionals are left puzzled when they meet a DG patient for the first time because only 30 percent of diabetics experience this form of paralysis.
With November being National Diabetes Month, it is imperative that diabetes patients and advocates receive accurate and easy-to-understand educational content about their health. In an effort to spread awareness, a digital health education initiative, Medicine X, created “DG Xplained,”an animated story explaining the ins-and-outs of DG — a particularly unknown health complication associated with diabetes. The story is designed specifically to be understandable for all patients regardless of age, gender, culture or health literacy.
“DG Xplained” bridges the gap between the language doctors use and the information patients understand through an interactive graphic story, devoid of all medical jargon.
“Doctors typically provide patients with boring fact sheets infested with complicated information,” says Dr. Kim Chilman-Blair, founder and president of Medicine X. “We’ve decided to disrupt traditional methods by bringing together graphic novelists and top doctors to create relatable, animated stories that explains this disease in a way everyone can understand.”
The interactive illustrations seen throughout the story are based on a real DG patient and reflects their journey, diagnosis, lifestyle changes and treatment options as they live with the condition. As leading educators, the International Foundation of Gastrointestinal Disorders partnered with Medicine X to provide invaluable insight and content to help qualify the integrity of the programs.
