Travelling to Malta

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Dralina

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Type 1
Hi all am wondering whether you lovely people can help me. I am going to be travelling (for the first time) and I am on an insulin pump with Fiasp.......I have heard that MAlta do not have Fiasp. 1) How do I find out what insulin is available? My concern is what would happen if insulin is lost etc and need to get emergency insulin........ Anyone well travelled know how this all works? Does anyone that travels takes a prescription for alternative insulin to take to the chemist if needed or is it a case of see a gp/hospital over there and they will prescribe an alternative?

I am presuming that if need be they would prescribe some long acting and fast acting alterative to tide meover in an emergency?

any help would be great! Andrea
 
@Dralina Malta is a beautiful island. My pump and I enjoyed a great trip there a few years ago.
We often travel all around the world together and I have never lost my insulin or had any issues.

As with all travel, it is advised to take at least twice as much of everything than you think you will need and include back up for your pump - you should have pens for both fast acting and slow acting insulin. Always carry this in your hand luggage whilst in flight and, once you arrive at your hotel separate them from your day pack. That way an emergency is exceedingly unlikely because you have insulin in multiple places.
However, if you are incredibly unfortunate, NovoRapid is more common than Fiasp and probably what they will have on Malta.
 
Hi thanks for advice. My worry is that I have so much medical equipment it won't all fit in hand luggage ......I have alot of cgm sensors etc....do ypu know whether i can take them out of the packaging amd snip the front of the packing to put it with them?maybe in a clear bag. I'm concerned all the boxes will just take up too much room......
 
You can ask the airline if you can take an extra medical bag as hand luggage if you have that much stuff.
I have always been able to fit everything in my hand luggage so never had that issue.
I think @Inka has taken a medical bag when flying.

I don't take any boxes with me (or the front of the packing) but my pump stuff doesn't come in individual boxes. I just chuck it all in a bag in my hand luggage.
 
Dralina said:
Hi thanks for advice. My worry is that I have so much medical equipment it won't all fit in hand luggage ......I have alot of cgm sensors etc....do ypu know whether i can take them out of the packaging amd snip the front of the packing to put it with them?maybe in a clear bag. I'm concerned all the boxes will just take up too much room......
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Many airlines will allow and extra medical bag as hand luggage so you could check with whoever you are travelling with.
I agree Malta is really good, some very interesting history and some amazing ornate churches.
 
helli said:
You can ask the airline if you can take an extra medical bag as hand luggage if you have that much stuff.
I have always been able to fit everything in my hand luggage so never had that issue.
I think @Inka has taken a medical bag when flying.

I don't take any boxes with me (or the front of the packing) but my pump stuff doesn't come in individual boxes. I just chuck it all in a bag in my hand luggage.
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That makes me feel a bit better! Alot cgm stuff comes in one large box and individually wrapped.....might just take photos.off the Internet of front of box and inside and pop in with them then if asked I can show them what they are! Are thy bothered about pump stuff or sensors? Do I need a medical letter for these or just insulin? Any further travel advice welcome
 
Leadinglights said:
Many airlines will allow and extra medical bag as hand luggage so you could check with whoever you are travelling with.
I agree Malta is really good, some very interesting history and some amazing ornate churches.
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Good to know! Any further advice welcome......just trying to get my head round what can go through xray and what can't.....brain hurts......I now know why I never go anywhere
 
Dralina said:
Do I need a medical letter for these or just insulin?
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I have a letter from my consultant (not GP because they charge) that covers everything. It is written in a ways that can be used again and again. In fact it is so old it is getting rather tatty.
In 20 years and hundreds of flights, I have needed that letter twice.

Dralina said:
just trying to get my head round what can go through xray and what can't.....brain hurts......
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Typically, CGMs are fine but pumps cannot go through the full body scanner. They are fine with the metal detector arch but if you are then requested to stand in the body scanner with your hands up, you should remove your pump if it is a tubed one or decline and as to be patted down if you have a patch pump.

I would recommend asking the manufacturer of your pump and CGM as the advice does vary. Some manufacturers will provide a loaner pump for travel. Your DSN may be able to advise you. They may be able to provide your letter too.
And make sure you have plenty of back up (finger prick test strips and insulin pens) in case they do fail.

Dralina said:
Any further advice welcome
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My first advice is don't panic. Lots of people with diabetes and insulin pumps travel. Security staff at airports are used to us.
My second advice is make sure your hypo treatment is with you in your seat on the plane. I know from personal experience how awkward it is having a hypo whilst taking off and realising your hypo treatment is in the overhead locker. The look you get from air crew when you stand up in that situation makes a hard Paddington stare feel like a loving glance.
My next advice is to keep a closer eye than usual on your BG. When we are holiday we do more or less exercise than usual, eat differently, maybe drink more alcohol than usual, ... all things that effect our BG so you may find your basal pattern on your pump doesn't quite match your needs on your trip.
Finally, have an amazing time. Malta is a beautiful country with stunning views, great (black) beaches, lots of history and yummy food.
 
I shall look forward to the food! Can I refuse to put my hand luggage through the xray machines and get them to manual check? I think this is OK but just wondered if anyone had any issue with this. Ie don't want to put any of my cgm stuff or spare insulin pump thru
 
I have frequently taken my Omnipod pods and my sensors in my hand baggage through the Xray machines in Security without any problems whatsoever. The only thing I refuse is to take myself through the full body scanners with a pod or pump on. I do have a sunflower lanyard that I wear for that purpose - no problems, they just patted me down and the arch is only a metal detector and poses no problems. When I had a tubed pump they were happy to swab it. I take the sensors out of that huge box and put them in a sock to pack in the hand baggage. I too have an ancient letter that no one has ever asked for... except once when I insisted on showing it to the check in clerk who was himself T1 and on that occasion we got marked as "suitable for upgrade" and were indeed upgraded - on a San Francisco flight that was more than welcome.
 
Good to know. Everything I've read says not to put the sensors or pump thru the xray machines ir body scanner.....metal detector fine.....am.sure the xray is fine but I think I wpuld spend the entire holiday worrying about it lol
 
Dralina said:
I shall look forward to the food! Can I refuse to put my hand luggage through the xray machines and get them to manual check? I think this is OK but just wondered if anyone had any issue with this. Ie don't want to put any of my cgm stuff or spare insulin pump thru
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If you are concerned, I would suggest putting your CGM stuff and spare pump in a separate bag that you can easily extract from your hand luggage so that the rest can go through x-ray and only the “sensitive“ stuff is hand checked.
I recommend giving yourself extra time at the airport to get through securit.
And put your insulin in a clear bag with any other liquids. Some security guys pull it out if it is not in a clear bag. Others don’t care but it is best to be prepared just in case.
 
That does sound like a good idea! Do you take your insulin out of boxes? It says insulin on the vials so presume ok? Are frio wallets OK to take through?
 
I allow loads of time to get through security, just in case.

I am on a pump and use sensors in a Hybrid Closed Loop. I am fine going through the metal detector arch at the start, but I then beep and ask for a pat down as I cannot go into the body scanner. This does not cause a problem and on one occasion I only got as far as saying I am wearing a pump and the person said ‘You won’t want to go through the scanner then, come over here for a pat down‘.

With all the airlines that I have travelled with I have been allowed an extra bag. If I am travelling with someone else I put one set of stuff in my hand luggage and another complete set in their hand luggage. That way if I lose my bag we have the other set of stuff. You are right that cannulas and sensor boxes take up a lot of space, and I would not want to take them out of their packaging

If you got completely stuck, you could get hold of some Novorapid which is just the slower version of FIASP. On a pump you would need to make adjustments to your timings of boluses but the amounts will be similar. Take a copy of your prescription along with a letter from your consultant. Your rarely need these but should have them with you.

Don’t forget to also take spares and pens as a back up just in case. When I drowned my pump, (a crack made it no longer waterproof) I then had no idea about all the data I needed such as TDD to switch back to pens. All the data was on the broken pump. Fortunately I share my data with the DSN team and they sorted me out. I now have a sticker on my pens with the starting dose to use, which I checked with my DSN when I had to do the switch.

Most importantly HAVE FUN and enjoy your holiday. The forum will still be there even if you are away and questions arise. Just ask.
 
Ahhh I didn't think of splitting the hand luggage. I suppose i could have all the sensors in 2 plastic bags and then once they've checked them manually I can split them before get on plane. I will definitely splitting stuff when I get to the other end. I'm on the closed loop h3nce all the spares....I also.have a libre and a decom in case the medtronic one malfunctions
 
Dralina said:
Ahhh I didn't think of splitting the hand luggage. I suppose i could have all the sensors in 2 plastic bags and then once they've checked them manually I can split them before get on plane. I will definitely splitting stuff when I get to the other end. I'm on the closed loop h3nce all the spares....I also.have a libre and a decom in case the medtronic one malfunctions
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Hi Dralina

I am on the same system as you. They are bulky but that just means as we use them up there is space for purchases later on in the holiday. I found the Smartguard so helpful when I was away. It dealt with inaccuracies in carbs, and variations in activity most of the time. I also took a spare of everything, doubled my cannulas and cartridges, and took a Libre just in case.

It was good to know I had access to the Medtronic support team and also to others using the system on here. My advice would be Do Not Assume that your pump is waterproof. I had a tiny crack and drowned mine whilst on holiday.

Interesting that you are using FIASP in the system. How is that going?
 
Fiasp is a ally working great. And the smartguard is amazing. I was having problems with the pump due to hormones.......so the smartguard clossed loop has really helped!
 
Be aware if you give your diabetes kit that the letter from your doc only covers you to carry it and you may get separated from your travelling companion. Given how rare it is to need to show the letter, the risk is very low so you may be happy to go for this option knowing you have a backup.
I usually travel alone for work so need to be independent. Therefore, I have no experience of a companion carrying any diabetes kit. It is just theory and what I have read on forums in the past.
 
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