DECATUR - Tina Cloney would normally shy away from public recognition. But the Decatur Memorial Hospital Diabetes Education Program manager, Millikin University instructor and Walden University Ph.D. student is passionate about changing lives.

Late last year, Cloney's passion earned her a spot as one of the grand-prize winners in Walden's Scholars of Change Video Contest. The contest invited Walden students committed to social change to submit videos about how their educational pursuits are impacting their communities.

Cloney entered at her husband's urging, but she said she wasn't doing anything out of the ordinary. She thrives on educating others.

"I love to inspire people," she said. "I love to empower people to know that they do have control over their choices and that their choices can make amazing differences."

Before going to work at DMH, Cloney had worked as a registered dietitian in other hospital settings. In her work, she met many diabetic patients who faced serious complications and were in need of help managing their disease.

Preventing complications such as vision problems and neuropathy are parts of Cloney's overall mission to improve the quality of life for those living with diabetes. That was the drive for her creation of the DMH Wellness Center's management program in early 2006.

"Wouldn't it be nice to be more proactive and change behavior earlier in a person's life?" Cloney said.

The program is recognized by the American Diabetes Association every three years and recently got the go-ahead to venture into the home health setting.

Estimates predict that the number of people with diabetes will double worldwide by 2025, Cloney said. With 8 percent of the local population affected and one out of every four to six people living with pre-diabetes, which can progress to the disease in 10 years if unchecked, prevention and management are essential to combating such sad statistics.

Cloney understands that her role as a university instructor is vital in training the next generation of nursing and exercise science professionals, who will be the front-line defense against the disease.

"I'm hoping that what they can leave with after being with me can help them impact other people as well," she said.

While working on her bachelor's degree, Cloney fell in love with her nutrition course and decided to pursue a career as a registered dietitian.

"No matter what you do, nutrition is important to you," she said.

She has her students complete family medical

history and risk assessments to understand how their own characteristics and lifestyle choices could affect their health.

Proper interventions such as nutrition and exercise can potentially reverse pre-diabetes, Cloney said. She encourages students and patients alike to avoid sedentary lifestyles, high-fat diets and risk factors such as smoking.

"You can make small changes and have huge rewards," she said.

Her contest prize came with $5,000 for herself and $2,500 to be given to the charity of her choice. She passed that on to Millikin's Exercise Science and Sport Department, which she joined three years ago.

Department chair Don Luy said the program is growing with students' increasing interest in health promotion and fitness careers.

The department will use the money to support course development, he said.

Classes such as Cloney's practicum on nutrition for home school students provide real-life applications for learning, Luy said. "It gets our faculty imbedded in community activity with the students."

Cloney's commitment to research also is important in helping students understand the practical applications of studies, he said. She's currently looking at provider practices in disease management.

"At a small school like Millikin, we're not a research institution," Luy said. "We're all about helping people apply what they learn. � She's a wonderful role model for digging into the issue."

Cloney said she realizes that fighting the devastating effects of diabetes within a changing community, country and world will require work from people in all avenues of life.

"We have to work together to meet the needs of people," she said.

The wellness center is completing a community diabetes library. It is expected to be up and running by the facility's annual Diabetes Update, set to take place from 1 to 4 p.m. March 23 in the center's classrooms.

agetsinger@herald-review.com|421-6968