Contact with diabetes team

[Blissfool]

Hi...I was wondering if anyone could share with me there experience of contact with their diabetes nurse? We were discharged with our son on 6th September, and since then have had one phone call from our nurse, and no home visit. We can call her (and have done) if we need advice in a "situation" but I am feeling a bit out in the cold. I know we are going to be "the experts" in our son's diabetes...we hear that often enough, but I am concerned that now the appointments with the consultant have fallen back to the tri-monthly clinics, that if there is a creeping problem, I will not have the expertise to spot it, and I want to know someone is seeing our son who will know what to look for. He is 2.5. Is this level of contact usual, or do people see their nurse more frequently? Thanks for your time. X

 

[SophiaW]

It is normal to only see your consultant about once every three months at clinic, your nurse should be at clinic too when you visit for your 3 monthly check. If you have any concerns inbetween that your nurse should be easily contactable. I suppose every nurse is different but our diabetes nurse has been wonderful - taking calls whenever I need some advice, she'll happily do a home visit if we need to see her and she has come with me into school to talk to the teachers about Jess' diabetes and how to manage at school (she has done this nearly every year when a new team of staff are involved as Jess goes through the different year groups).

Keep your record diary of your son's readings up to date and if you spot anything that concerns you then get in touch with your nurse to have a chat about it. What you're looking for is a pattern of low or high readings that would need to be corrected. You should be aiming for most of your son's readings to fall within the target range your consultant set for you.

If you're still concerned and feel you need to see someone more often in the early stages until you feel more confident then have a chat with your diabetes nurse. I don't see any reason why they can't see you in clinic more often until you feel confident to be on your own for a longer period between appointments.

I found reading and learning more about diabetes very empowering and reassuring. The more I feel in control the easier it is to live with. The most helpful book I've read is "Type 1 diabetes in children. adolescents and young adults", it really helped me to understand how it all works. When something makes sense it's easier to work with.