ypauly
Well-Known Member
- Relationship to Diabetes
- Type 1
Elle certainly has a point about many people not doing enough for themselves. We on this forum and I am sure that people on other forums are just the same do everything we can as good as we can of that I am sure. However there are people that don't I know two type ones, one is my oldest brother the other is a colleague. They rarely test unless they think something is seriously wrong and when they do it is usually in double figures (I have yet to see a figure of below 18 from either of them) they both have a morning/evening set time injection regime and both have recently suffered complication as a result.
The thing I find most alarming is that when I try to explain to them (probably comes across as a constant nagging) they both are under the belief that it's the hospitals problem because they take their insulin as prescribed, it must be the diabetes center that has done something wrong or calculated the insulin requirement wrong and they will mention it at the next appointment. The colleague was diagnosed not long before myself at the age of about 48 my brother was diagnosed at 16 and is now 46, he has just become a father for the first time which is even more of a concern as now the wife has had to start nagging him as well.
These maybe exceptions they maybe more normal than we would like to believe but whatever they are there are definitely people out there costing the NHS with conditions that could be avoided.
The other side of the coin I talk about is that there are people that want to manage their condition better but are being restricted by refusal of test strips, this will undoubtedly lead to much higher costs in treating the complications.
Incidentally my other brother is a type 2, rare as he has never been overweight nor physically inactive as he loves his sport and football. He takes his condition very seriously and has completely changed his diet and uses my tester whenever I'm on the same shift to see how he is getting on (we know all about type 2's and test strips) his hba1c is now a completely normal 6. P.S I did of course offer him one of my spare testers 😉
I would love to see a better diabetes education on diagnosis for all and I can't complain at my treatment at all as I have been given everything and more. The difference as I see it is that I show an interest and ask questions and want to improve I can only assume that the two people I have talked about don't show the same enthusiasm in their review as I and others show.
The NHS isn't perfect and it probably could be better funded it may even have been better to not re-structure it at this time, it may even be better managed but I know one thing for sure.
WE ARE VERY LUCKY TO HAVE IT, it is without doubt one of the finest organizations in the world without doubt.
The thing I find most alarming is that when I try to explain to them (probably comes across as a constant nagging) they both are under the belief that it's the hospitals problem because they take their insulin as prescribed, it must be the diabetes center that has done something wrong or calculated the insulin requirement wrong and they will mention it at the next appointment. The colleague was diagnosed not long before myself at the age of about 48 my brother was diagnosed at 16 and is now 46, he has just become a father for the first time which is even more of a concern as now the wife has had to start nagging him as well.
These maybe exceptions they maybe more normal than we would like to believe but whatever they are there are definitely people out there costing the NHS with conditions that could be avoided.
The other side of the coin I talk about is that there are people that want to manage their condition better but are being restricted by refusal of test strips, this will undoubtedly lead to much higher costs in treating the complications.
Incidentally my other brother is a type 2, rare as he has never been overweight nor physically inactive as he loves his sport and football. He takes his condition very seriously and has completely changed his diet and uses my tester whenever I'm on the same shift to see how he is getting on (we know all about type 2's and test strips) his hba1c is now a completely normal 6. P.S I did of course offer him one of my spare testers 😉
I would love to see a better diabetes education on diagnosis for all and I can't complain at my treatment at all as I have been given everything and more. The difference as I see it is that I show an interest and ask questions and want to improve I can only assume that the two people I have talked about don't show the same enthusiasm in their review as I and others show.
The NHS isn't perfect and it probably could be better funded it may even have been better to not re-structure it at this time, it may even be better managed but I know one thing for sure.
WE ARE VERY LUCKY TO HAVE IT, it is without doubt one of the finest organizations in the world without doubt.
