We interviewed the founder of Diabetes Education Services to discover her personal and professional motivations to go from a floor nurse to a leader in the field of diabetes.

Question: Why Did You Become a CDCES?

Coach Beverly: Over 20 years ago, as the Manager of our Health Education Department at CIGNA (an HMO), our team decided that we wanted to become a magnet site for diabetes care and education in our community. To achieve this, we encouraged our entire team to study for their CDE (now CDCES) to showcase our dedication to providing the best diabetes care.

Question: Has Holding the CDCES Credential Provided You with Additional Professional Opportunities? Please share one or two examples.

Coach Beverly: Holding this credential has been the best professional decision of my career. Having a master’s degree plus my CDCES opened the door for me to be hired as the Diabetes Nurse Specialist at Stanford Hospital in 1994. Working at Stanford provided me the opportunity to initiate bold strategies to improve diabetes care and outcomes in a busy, demanding, and innovative teaching hospital. I learned how to manage very complex patients and build interdisciplinary professional teams to provide the best care from admission to discharge and beyond.

My experience as a Diabetes Specialist at Stanford Hospital gave me the confidence, clinical knowledge and courage to launch my own company.

In 1998, I applied for my first business license as Diabetes Education Services.  Our company is dedicated to helping health care professionals realize their dream of becoming certified diabetes specialists. In operation for over 20 years, our small but mighty organization is laser-focused on providing high-quality resources and services for our community of health care professionals.

I love coming to work every day and figuring out new ways of delivering content that is meaningful, evidence-based, and infused with compassion.

Without my CDCES, none of these life-changing opportunities would have been possible.

Question: What Would you Say to Someone Who is Considering Becoming a CDCES in the Future?

Coach Beverly: Welcome to our awesome community! Every day that I show up to work as a diabetes specialist, I feel that I am a part of something bigger. This community passionately and collectively works toward improving the care and quality of life for people living with diabetes. Diabetes specialists also have the opportunity to work in a variety of settings, to teach individuals or groups, or on a community level to advocate for excellence in diabetes care. Even though I have worked in this field for over 20 years, I am challenged, I have the opportunity to role-model compassionate care and I love the people I get to work with.

Question: Share an Achievement or Special Moment You’ve had working as a CDCES?

Coach Beverly: An achievement that I am particularly proud of is the LifeChanger of the Year Award. I was nominated by a person with diabetes who attended our hospital’s diabetes self-management program we called “Diabetes Survival Camp.” She was an enthusiastic participant and brought her husband to each class.  After graduation, she started attending our monthly support group and shared a lot of helpful information. When I received the letter that she had nominated me for this prestigious national award and I had won, I was overjoyed and deeply touched. 

Her nomination reminded me that the everyday work we do touches people profoundly. 

We listen, help with problem-solving, and we lift people up who are discouraged. We celebrate their victories and we let them know through our words and gestures that we believe in them.  There is no better job in the world.

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Studying for the CDCES exam?
Join Coach Bev for a FREE Webinar with updates on the CDCES Exam 2021 on April 1st from 11:30 am to 1:00 pm PST

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Preparing for the CDCES Exam |
FREE Webinar

Airs live on April 1, 2021 | 11:30 am – 1:00 pm (PST)

This course will transform your test anxiety into calm self-confidence and test-taking readiness.

Topics Covered Include:

• Implications of new certification name, CDCES for our specialty
• Exam requirement updates for 2021.
• Exam eligibility and test format
• Strategies to succeed along with a review of study tips and test-taking tactics.
• We will review sample test questions and the reasoning behind choosing the right answers.
• Learn how to focus your time and prepare to take the CDCES Exam. We provide plenty of sample test questions and test-taking tips!

We will review sample test questions and the reasoning behind choosing the right answers. After registering, you will receive a confirmation email containing information about joining the webinar.

See our Prep for CDCES Resource Page

Instructor: Beverly Thomassian RN, MPH, CDCES, BC-ADM is a working educator who has passed her CDCES Exam 6 times. She is a nationally recognized diabetes expert for over 25 years.

Can’t join us live?
Don’t worry, we will send you a link to the recorded version.

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Studying for the CDCES?
Try one of our online bundles!

Interested in diabetes certification, but not sure where to start? Find your Study Path and Tools that are right for you based on this quick survey.

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Virtual DiabetesEd Specialist Conference | April 15-17, 2021

Whether you are new to diabetes or a seasoned expert, you’ll benefit from this virtual conference with the latest research plus critical content that you can immediately apply to your clinical practice. If you are interested in taking the CDCES or BC-ADM exam or are seeking a state-of-the-art review of current diabetes care, this course is for you.

DiabetesEd Virtual Conference Flyer 2021

Diabetes Ed Virtual 3-Day Schedule 2021

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Entire Program Fee: $399
Dates: April 15-17, 2021
3 Expert Speakers
CEs: 30+ CE hours
Live Webinar Schedule: All webinars start and end times are in Pacific Standard Time

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Come join our Virtual DiabetesEd Specialist Program.

Team of expert faculty includes:

• Diana Isaacs, PharmD, BCPS, BC-ADM, BCACP, CDCES – Educator of the Year, 2020
• Coach Beverly Thomassian, RN, MPH, CDCES, BC-ADM
• Ashley LaBrier, MS, RD, CDCES, Diabetes Program Coordinator

In addition to informative lectures, we also use group activities and case studies to highlight the essential knowledge, skills, and strategies needed to succeed in diabetes education today! 

Prepare for CDCES or BC-ADM certification or earn hours for renewal.

Your registrations include access to all the Online Sessions plus Bonus Courses through December 31^st, 2021.

This virtual program includes:

3 day live webinar courses from April 15th-17th (20 CEs) + enrollment in our Bonus Bundle (14.0+ CEs) from now through December 2021.

• Live Q & A Session with the instructor after each webinar
• Presentations by our team of experts
• Handouts and Resources for each session
• Post-test questions
• A sense of community
• If you can’t attend the live webinars, a recorded version will be posted later the same day for viewing.

View full Conference Schedule and Faculty.

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Accreditation: Diabetes Education Services is an approved provider by the California Board of Registered Nursing, Provider 12640, and Commission on Dietetic Registration (CDR), Provider DI002. Since these programs are approved by the CDR it satisfies the CE requirements for the CDCES regardless of your profession.* 

The use of DES products does not guarantee the successful passage of the CDCES exam. CBDCE does not endorse any preparatory or review materials for the CDCES exam, except for those published by CBDCE.