Blood testing strips

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mermaid38

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Type 1
Has anyone else on here ever had problems with their GP getting testing strips :confused:

I've had problems with about 4 different GPs over the years I was told they cost alot of money and that's why they don't want to give you more than 1 bottle.

I recently had a conversation with a GP who said 1 bottle of strips should last 9 months...

Which would mean you would hardly test at all, I am on the insulin pump and have to test at least 4 times a day, I can't keep everything under control otherwise.

I had to (again) get a letter from the DAFNE clinic to say that this is the case.
Dose Adjustment For Normal Eating (just incase you were wondering). :D
 
mermaid38 said:
Has anyone else on here ever had problems with their GP getting testing strips :confused:

I've had problems with about 4 different GPs over the years I was told they cost alot of money and that's why they don't want to give you more than 1 bottle.

I recently had a conversation with a GP who said 1 bottle of strips should last 9 months...

Which would mean you would hardly test at all, I am on the insulin pump and have to test at least 4 times a day, I can't keep everything under control otherwise.

I had to (again) get a letter from the DAFNE clinic to say that this is the case.
Dose Adjustment For Normal Eating (just incase you were wondering). :D
Click to expand...

I'm a diet and exercise controlled Type 2 who doesn't need to test very often. Despite that, I have yet to make a pot of 50 last 6 months. How a GP can expect a type 1 to last 9 months beggars belief! :(

It also goes against all the published guidelines that I have seen recently.

Andy
 
I had a similar letter from my dafne nurse saying 'he needs lots of strips and thats the end of it'. Never had any problems before that either.

Especially now your pumping a letter should be enough, I would of thought...
 
I was wondering if your Dr's records have you listed as type 2? As Drs can be reluctant to prescribe in such circumstances.

Irrespective of whether you are type 1 or 2 being on an insulin pump should be sufficient for the Dr to know you need to test regularly.

Do you drive ? As if you do then you need to ensure that your Blood Glucose is above 5 before driving and on a long journey you are meant to check every couple of hours.

If you are ill you need to test more regularly and if you have a hypo you are meant to test to check you are hypo and then check that your treatment has worked. How one box (do any have more than 50 strips ?) is expected to last more than 9 months is beyond me.

Sounds like the Dr may need some additional training....
 
I'm a Type 1.5 currently having lots of fun with meds and needing to test at least four times a day, often more. I'm finally getting mine on prescription with a limit of 100 per month, so I often end up buying extras (usually off eBay because that's cheapest). I dread to thing what they're going to do when I go on insulin.
 
I have never had a problum getting them and now I have a new accu chek mobile and thy come in a casset of 50 and get 2 in each box so thats 100 and I have been doing about 10 11 test a day and have got them nealy every week no bother
 
Alison - when you go on insulin the restriction *should* be lifted.

Mermaid - Your doctor is talking complete nonsense. As Margie says the DVLA guidelines alone would use more strips than that. Tell your GP to count themselves lucky... at the moment 1 pot lasts me less than two weeks at between 6 and 10 tests a day (sorry T2s 😱).
 
My daughters come in boxes of 50 and her script is for 2 boxes. That lasts her a max of 25 days so I get a new script every three weeks. Keep expecting them to query this but so far so good.
 
I'm using a box of 50 Optium Plus at least every week but we had to get a fax from teh DSN for this. The GP wants us to cut down fairly soon but I think would be ok with 1 box every fortnight or 10 days.

I think you would do well to get someone independant such as DSN at hospital to have a word with them. If they think only of their budget, it's your health that suffers.

Rob
 
mermaid38 said:
Has anyone else on here ever had problems with their GP getting testing strips :confused:
Click to expand...

Yes! I am currently battling with my gp who refuses to give me more than 1 pot of 50 strips each time I put my repeat in (I test 7/8 times each day) so I have to keep putting the prescription in everytime I pick up 1 pot! My previous gp gave me 4 boxes each time but he retired and this new gp just won't budge! 😡
 
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It's nonsense to limit strips, especially when you are on a pump! Have a look at this poll (you'll need to vote yourself to see the numbers)

http://www.diabetessupport.co.uk/boards/showthread.php?t=12593

The majority of people test 4-6 times a day or more. There are so many reasons you might need to test, but as a minimum you need to test before eating and before bed so you know how much insulin to take and whether you are safe to go to sleep. My GP is pretty good but even she did not realise how many things might require a test - illness, driving, exercise, feeling low, feeling high, learning effect of food, 3 am tests, extra tests for pumps....and so on. Once I explained she agreed to give me 300 strips per prescription. You're always going to need them so forcing you back to the pharmacy too often is pointless. My 300 strips last me about as long as my 200 needles and is in line with my other medications which are issued as a 56 day supply.

I'd urge anyone who i not on at least this kind of level, and on insulin, to insist that their doctor raises it and understands the reason for it.
 
My script is 200 (4 tubs) of strips. 1 tub lasts me around 5-6 days.



Only once has a gp questioned this, just before i got my pump he said "i presume you will need much less (strips) when you have the pump", 😱 they have no clue!
 
It makes you wonder what they think we do with them. Having sore fingers is not something you set out to acheive.

If they suspect us of trading on ebay, I'd rather they just say and I'd be happy to show them the meter.

I'd love to know how they arrive at an 'acceptable' level of use. I presume the board of directors thrash it out and set a cost limit, above which it is 'too much' regardless of medical needs.

Rob
 
Robster65 said:
It makes you wonder what they think we do with them. Having sore fingers is not something you set out to acheive.

If they suspect us of trading on ebay, I'd rather they just say and I'd be happy to show them the meter.

I'd love to know how they arrive at an 'acceptable' level of use. I presume the board of directors thrash it out and set a cost limit, above which it is 'too much' regardless of medical needs.

Rob
Click to expand...

I did a review of a book aimed at doctors:

http://www.diabetessupport.co.uk/boards/showthread.php?t=9954

It was a very good book, apart from their delusion about how often to test and the reasons for doing it. Yes, strips are expensive, but they are just as necessary a part of diabetes management as insulin fr those who are on it. The alternatives are potentially dangerous mismanagement, complications, hospitalisation or life-threatening situations, so why this is so difficult to understand fails me.

I'd be happy to show the doctor my meter to prove I'm not selling strips. A random check would be enough to dissuade people from trying to sell them.
 
I would be suprised if people are trading them on ebay. Since they are prescription drugs you would need to be a licensed supplier to sell them and supplying them without a license is illegal. I would never buy them from ebay either since you don't know what you are getting, however its easy for me to say as I'm Type 1 and have no trouble getting them. ALL diabetics should be able to get the test strips they need, its a completely false economy to withhold them, but sadly its all about short term cash not long term thinking nowadays.
As ever if you do have problems you should complain to your PCT, all complaints have to be logged and they don't like unresolved complaints as it reflects badly on them and their statistics.....
 
marke said:
I would be suprised if people are trading them on ebay. Since they are prescription drugs you would need to be a licensed supplier to sell them and supplying them without a license is illegal.
Click to expand...

I'm sure people trade them on ebay - where else do they come from? They can be bought over the counter so I don't think they require any kind of licensing.
 
We did buy a couple of boxes via Lloyds healthcare online when we were having problems getting them at less than a week apart. Unfortunately, I'd just about run out of them and there's only so much pushing you can do with the GP.

As Northerner says, anyone can sell them which is how many T2s have to obtain supplies. It is very sad that there's such a postcode lottery on something so vital but while ever it's left up to individual trusts or GPs to decide their own policy based on nothing more than assumptions, then many will have a battle for some time to come.

Many of us remember urine testing and how uninformative that was. It would be nice if some of the doctors were able to remember the 'good old days' too. Complications were almost inevitable then. Thanks to blood testing, we can take control of our own care in real time and prolong our lives and save the NHS a fortune.

I'll step back off the soapbox since I'm preaching to the converted, but you never know who might be reading the forum. :D

Rob
 
I'd love to know how often these doctors would feel the need to test if they had diabetes, or if it affected their child.
 
Northerner said:
I'd love to know how often these doctors would feel the need to test if they had diabetes, or if it affected their child.
Click to expand...

Well said Northener.
 
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