Morning Q, whats this gadget on your desk, it looks like a bg reading meter, dont touch that James its a cleverly concealed weapon of mass destruction.
Sorry couldnt resist
Here is what you should expect from your care team.
15 healthcare essentials
Having the right care is essential for the well being of all people with diabetes. There is a minimum level of healthcare that every person with diabetes deserves and should expect.
Here are the 15 essential checks and services you should receive. If you aren’t getting all the care you need, take this checklist to your diabetes healthcare team and discuss it with them.
1. Get your blood glucose levels measured at least once a year. An HbA1c blood test will measure your overall blood glucose control and help you and your diabetes healthcare team set your own target.
2. Have your blood pressure measured and recorded at least once a year, and set a personal target that is right for you.
3. Have your blood fats (cholesterol) measured every year. Like blood glucose levels and blood pressure, you should have your own target that is realistic and achievable.
4. Have your eyes screened for signs of retinopathy every year. Using aspecialised digital camera, a photo of each eye will be taken and examined by a specialist who will look for any changes to your retina (the seeing part at the back of your eye).
5. Have your feet checked – the skin, circulation and nerve supply of your feet should be examined annually. You should be told if you have any risk of foot problems, how serious they are and if you will be referred to a specialist podiatrist or specialist foot clinic.
6. Have your kidney function monitored annually. You should have two tests for your kidneys: urine test for protein (a sign of possible kidney problems) and a blood test to measure kidney function.
7. Have your weight checked and have your waist measured to see if you need to lose weight.
8. Get support if you are a smoker including advice and support on how to quit. Having diabetes already puts people at increased risk of heart disease and stroke, and smoking further increases this risk.
9. Receive care planning to meet your individual needs – you live with diabetes every day so you should have a say in every aspect of your care. Your yearly care plan should be agreed as a result of a discussion between you and your diabetes healthcare team, where you talk about your individual needs and set targets.*
10. Attend an education course to help you understand and manage your diabetes. You should be offered and have the opportunity to attend courses in your local area.
11. Receive paediatric care if you are a child or young person. You should receive care from specialist diabetes paediatric healthcare professionals. When the time comes to leave paediatric care, you should know exactly what to expect so you have a smooth change over to adult health services.
12. Receive high quality care if admitted to hospital. If you have to stay in hospital, you should still continue to receive high-quality diabetes care from specialist diabetes healthcare professionals, regardless of whether you have been admitted due to your diabetes or not.
13. Get information and specialist care if you are planning to have a baby as your diabetes control has to be a lot tighter and monitored very closely. You should expect care and support from specialist healthcare professionals at every stage from preconception to post-natal care.
14. See specialist diabetes healthcare professionals to help you manage your diabetes. Diabetes affects different parts of the body and you should have the opportunity to see specialist professionals such as an ophthalmologist, podiatrist or dietitian.
15. Get emotional and psychological support. Being diagnosed with diabetes and living with a long term condition can be difficult. You should be able to talk about your issues and concerns with specialist healthcare professionals.
Checks and services for children.
Children should receive more frequent HbA1c measurements and regular weight, height and general health checks from their healthcare team. Formal screening for complications generally begin at age 12.
The above is reprinted from a DUK leaflet, for more information about the Diabetes UK charirty –
http://www.diabetes.org.uk
OK so thats what you should expect but unfortunately not necessarily what you want ie bg meters and test strips etc, these unfortunately are prescribed at your GP's discretion unless you are on insulin and in some cases other meds with insulin like properties, even some T2's on Glic do not get test strips prescribed or have them limited.
This is perfectly fine for anyone who is not bothered about self management, but is not so good for those of us who are proactive and interested in self management. The NHS is skint and savings have to be made and as most doctors dont realise that you can actually be proactive in controlling T2 diabetes they feel they are largely unnecessary.
I had some degree of success with my GP who wanted to stop prescribing me any test strips by explaining to him how I used them to get the tight control that I still enjoy today, I am still made to feel as though it is some special privilege though which makes me loath to ask for any except the bare minimum of a couple of boxes a year now, I make the excess up from getting "free" meters whenever I see them advertised which generally come with 10 strips and I buy a few boxes off eBay too. That said I am lucky in that I now know what I can and cant eat and as long as I dont deviate too far from my knowledge base I dont go too far wrong.
The best way to get strips is to get your GP on side and no one has ever done that by being aggressive and saying they know best, I am not saying that to anyone in particular but there are so many posts on here saying how people argue with their GP's and that is only ever going to end badly. If you can show the benefits of testing without sounding like a know it all or some low carb fanatic or being aggressive you may have a chance of getting a few boxes to help you but I think we have to accept that some practices will have a blanket "no strips" policy in place and that is going to be hard to get around for some.
The bottom line for anyone who wants to be proactive in their management is that you have to get test strips by what ever method you can and that will be easier if you have a good relationship with your GP as no one else gives them away
free.
, and even then I was never outside the Type 2 recommended levels. 
