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Jury service

T1 was indeed not a valid reason for exemption - unfortunately!

The central office for jury service weren't hugely helpful, but did make sure my special requirements (ie my phone is a medical device) were made known to the crown court i was summoned to.

Normal protocol is that the phone is on Do Not Disturb (low glucose alarm set to override) & kept with the usher. The usher requested a dispensation from the judge that I could keep my phone & glucose tablets on the table in front of me, which I did. Only one hairy moment where I could feel myself going low so took a tablet. They called a break literally 2 mins later so I was saved from writing a note to the usher asking for one.

Deliberation I got another dispensation, so my phone was the only one in the room. It was in a bag though so absolutely for testing only.

My BG levels arent stable enough really for me to be having large gaps of 2 hours without testing, so I did have some horrible highs.
 
I wonder if Dexcom, Libre and the like have put any thought into these situations for people with diabetes ? Not sure exactly what they could come up with, I’m sure it would warrant a discussion.
 
Diatribe-T1 said:
I wonder if Dexcom, Libre and the like have put any thought into these situations for people with diabetes ? Not sure exactly what they could come up with, I’m sure it would warrant a discussion.
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Manufacturers of cgms only need to jump over the safety requirements demanded by medical device regulators (like the UK's Medicines and Healthcare Products Regulatory Agency) and not what is or isn't permitted in court during a jury trial.

To be fair to both Dexcom and Abbott, I believe they now both have features where you can "pause" most (but possibly not "critical" low) alarms for up to 6-8 hours. The ability to do this with Abbott cgms is only available in the USA at the moment, which is the only country where Abbott have rolled out their new "Libre by Abbott" software app.

And I believe users can simply turn all cgm alarms off (not ideal if a diabetic wants to be notified of every alarm).

It would help if medical device regulators would allow cgm manufacturers to have a "vibrate only" alarm setting. But I guess not one ever asks for the real world opinions of diabetic lawyers when these products are being designed, or before they go through the regulatory process.

Judges are becoming more cognisant of the fact that lawyers, witnesses and jurors who appear in their courts may be diabetic and may wear medical devices that might alarm, etc. It is always best to make that known to the court (court ushers are usually very helpful) well in advance, to see if any accommodations can be made.
 
Thanks B for this v informative and considered reply. Hopefully new CGMS will have these new features available on this side of the pond. Definitely believe that as diabetes is becoming more common, CGMS are a more familiar device in everyday life. Perhaps Judge is wearing one.
 
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