First of all, hello! This is my first post here. I'm hoping that someone can offer me some insight into successfully getting a insulin pump on the NHS.
I have been injecting insulin, and generally ignoring my diabetes for 18 years now. In the past year I have attended a course in carbohydrate counting, and insulin ratios. In this past year I have become extremely motivated to take control of my diabetes, and I want to do all that I can possibly do to get the best control. I have been taking multiple daily injections and am still struggling to get the kind of results that I was hoping for. My HBA1c has improved, and now stands at 7.9.
Since speaking to a couple of people using pumps, and hearing what a positive experience they have had I felt that this must be the next logical step for me. In the past week I have just got an appointment to see the consultant who deals with pump therapy, which finally leads me to my query!
I was hoping to get some advice on what I need to prove to meet the NICE guidelines. Now that my HBA1c is below 8.5, I won't qualify on that part. The only other qualifying factor is suffering from 'disabling hypos'. I'm not entirely sure what this means. I don't suffering from blackouts, and get a reasonable warning of hypos. On the other hand, I take quite a few sick days off work because I'm worried about recurring hypos. I also spend too much of my time worrying about my diabetes, and the fact that my control still isn't good enough. I guess my main concern is that I won't be able to convince the consultant that I deserve an insulin pump. Can anyone shed any light on how this process works?
Sorry for the long winded post. I've had so much on my mind, and no-one to really discuss it with. Any help or advice would be greatly appreciated.
I have been injecting insulin, and generally ignoring my diabetes for 18 years now. In the past year I have attended a course in carbohydrate counting, and insulin ratios. In this past year I have become extremely motivated to take control of my diabetes, and I want to do all that I can possibly do to get the best control. I have been taking multiple daily injections and am still struggling to get the kind of results that I was hoping for. My HBA1c has improved, and now stands at 7.9.
Since speaking to a couple of people using pumps, and hearing what a positive experience they have had I felt that this must be the next logical step for me. In the past week I have just got an appointment to see the consultant who deals with pump therapy, which finally leads me to my query!
I was hoping to get some advice on what I need to prove to meet the NICE guidelines. Now that my HBA1c is below 8.5, I won't qualify on that part. The only other qualifying factor is suffering from 'disabling hypos'. I'm not entirely sure what this means. I don't suffering from blackouts, and get a reasonable warning of hypos. On the other hand, I take quite a few sick days off work because I'm worried about recurring hypos. I also spend too much of my time worrying about my diabetes, and the fact that my control still isn't good enough. I guess my main concern is that I won't be able to convince the consultant that I deserve an insulin pump. Can anyone shed any light on how this process works?
Sorry for the long winded post. I've had so much on my mind, and no-one to really discuss it with. Any help or advice would be greatly appreciated.