[Patient education: an indispensable element of care of patients with diabetes mellitus].

Diabetes is a chronic and progressive disorder that impacts upon almost every aspect of life. The number of people with diabetes is continuously growing and diabetes is associated with a high mortality rate. Diabetes education is a critical element of care of people with diabetes in order to improve clinical outcomes. The therapeutic patient education is a planned and structured program that is comprehensive in scope, flexible in content, responsive to an individual's clinical and psychological needs, and adaptable to patients' educational and cultural background. The diabetes educator should control the implementation of education and should evaluate the patient's knowledge. The educator should be trained for care of patients with chronic diseases and for education of patients with diabetes mellitus.