Type 1 any international student in the forum?? really need your help on prescribing insulin

Hi there ~ This is my first time posting in this forum, so correct me if i do anything wrong/ make some spelling mistakes.

I am an undergraduate student from China, planning to study for master degree in the UK (of course, still in the application process lol).

I google and found this forum,and I'd like to ask you guys about t1d matters. Really grateful if you could answer some of my doubts!!

I've also lived with t1d for 6 years now, and I am really concerned about /not sure if the process of prescribing and getting insulin in the UK is accessible and convenient, could you please give me some information?

I've heard that international students will sign up for a GP on arrival and can then be prescribed insulin through the GP, but I am still not quite sure exactly what to do.

My parents worried about my health greatly. I assume that prescribing insulin in UK won't be that of a problem, but you know, parents always worry a lot since they don't know anything about UK healthcare system... ... well,so am I.

Studying abroad has always been my plan since I was a kid, and I think it would be a valuable lifetime experience. I really don't want to give up my plans to study abroad because of T1D. So i really need to do some survey in advance about getting insullin in UK. So could you please give me some tips? Any information would be helpful, thank you guys in advance~

(btw, I use these right now

KennyA said:

Hi annnnn, and welcome to the forums. Anyone can register with a GP in the UK provided that they are "lawfully and permanently" resident in the country.

If you obtain a student visa good for the UK, that would meet the "lawfully" part of the requirement.

In practice, "permanently" means for about six months or more - if you've been granted a visa because you're doing a postgrad degree, that means that part is also met.

My advice, once you've obtained a visa and a place at a university, is then to make contact with a GP through the University's student medical services before you leave home. It won't be the first time the student medical services have had an issue like this and they should be able to ensure that you don't have a problem. Obviously, you'd travel with enough insulin to cover you for the journey and for some time afterwards, just in case.

Hope this is helpful

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Thank you so much for your advice!! I've tried to consult the adimission office of the university before, but their answer is kinda ambiguous, and they gave me a number to call. I guess if i get admitted and get my student visa, student medical services will provide me with more specific help.
Yes, I will travel with enough insulin , but insulin need to be kept in refridgerator so I can't bring let say a year of insulin to UK. Maybe I can only carry up to two months' worth of insulin with me, so i need to make sure that it won't be a problem in the future. (just to complain, T1D sucks!!)

EllieM said:

Yes, I feel your pain, I got T1 as a child so spent all my university years with it.

The good news is that your overseas visa requires you to pay a medical contribution which entitles you to UK benefits from the NHS. As a T1, that means you'll get free prescriptions (though you have to fill in a form to apply for them)and should mean that you get free insulin, testing strips etc. There is also a good chance that you'll qualify for NHS funded continuous glucose monitoring (availability is now rolling out for T1s).

Do you have a particular university that you want to apply to?

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Wow, that would be really nice if I am qualified! Thank you for the news.

I'm thinking about UCL, LSE, university of Edinburg and so on...(My major is law)

Oh and I'd like to know how do you get your daily insulin suppliment? for example, do you need to visit the GP every time, or you just show up to a pharmacy with a prescription? How much can you normally prescribe at a time / is there a limit?
(a lot of questions lol) thanks!!

EllieM said:

That's sounds very exciting.

I admit my UK knowledge of prescribing limits is a little/lot out of date, so you're best waiting for the UK forumites to answer your insulin prescription questions. (In my day my GP gave me a prescription for insulin etc which I took to a pharmacy but also referred me to a hospital to review my T1 care.)

Can I ask, are you on a basal long acting insulin as well as the apidra?

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No problem, I will wait for other forumites to answer, thanks! yes, I use tresiba for a basal long acting insulin as well.

Resurgam said:

There should be a well established system at whichever university you are to study, there might even be a dedicated clinic at or close to the campus where they expect students to be able to register for their time on the course.
It might help if you can bring a letter from your prescriber, or if you can get the contact details in these days you can probably send an email giving details of the duration of your course and the amounts and names of the insulins you use, the pens and other supplies - in English if possible as a starting point for the clinic. If that is not possible don't worry as you will have your supplies with you to show, if necessary.

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Thank you for your answer~~Sorry for the late reply. I just saw your answer .

I feel more grounded and less worried now. I will do as you say when I have my contact details and a confirmed school.

Also, can you tell me what your regular process is for prescribing insulin, pins and such? For example, is there a limit on the number of supplys that can be picked up per visit? Thanks~~~

Rokaab said:

Repeat prescriptions are set up for people who need to keep getting medications, I think most doctors will prescribe medications for a month or two at a time (though there will be some variations dependent on the doctors surgery and this may differ for people who are on student visas, I just don't know) - obviously people need varying amounts of insulin so when you try to get your prescription sorted out they'll probably want to know roughly how much you use

When I need more I just order online (using a service that my doctors can see) and the doctors will approve it (or let me know why not) and my prescription gets sent to my selected pharmacy

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That's so much more convenient than I imagined! So basically, other than the first meeting with the doctor, I don't need to meet the doctor in person every time, just click some buttons online and go to the pharmacy, right?
Thank you for the detailed information, it's really helpful!

Resurgam said:

No problem.
I go into the local university to service their knitting machines in the summer when they are sorting out the information for students and bringing new staff members up to speed on various aspects of management for disabled and medication dependent students and the information new students require about local GPs and clinics.
Wherever you go there should be information available specific to that area right from your arrival.

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Got it, thank you! I suppose now all I have to do is to get admitted into a specific uni.

Rokaab said:

Well I have to have a review once a year, but yeah don't have to see the doctor or anyone at my doctors surgery for repeat prescriptions - they don't have time to see people for that anyways

I suspect most surgeries have some form of online ordering now for repeat prescriptions, if not it'll be filling in a repeat prescription form and getting that to your doctors surgery.

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True, doctors must be very busy and have other things or more severe patients to care for. Thank you for your detailed explanation.