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Pet Peeves

the-mental-one

Well-Known Member
Messages
119
Location
Nadur, Malta
Type of diabetes
Type 2
Treatment type
Tablets (oral)
This is a mini rant, I guess sometimes it's good to have a vent.

I find dealing with the docs or the pharmacy is sometimes just hard. Had this in multiple countries now and the NHS was definitely better in many aspects, but it took me three years to have my doctors agree to test me for diabetes because I "was too young to have type 2 diabetes" which wasn't great. Sometimes I feel like I tell them things and they don't listen

Yesterday I went to buy some gaviscon or sugar free rennie, the pharmacist didn't have those but offered me a different antacid, turns out they have quite a bit of glucose in each tablet despite the pharmacist knowing I'm diabetic and me specifying I was asking for sugar free options :***:

Then we come to today's issue; I buy test strips for my original meter but ran out of them as I hadn't had a chance to go buy more, but I didn't worry too much about it because I had recently been given a pharmacy provided one (the pharmacy provides me with a machine and 25 test strips per month for free per the Maltese version of the NHS) so planned to use those in the mean time. One slight problem, the strips don't fit the machine...I don't understand why they would provide strips that don't fit the machine they also provided.

In a happy twist of fate it's my pharmacy's turn to be open on Sunday so I can go out and buy more strips / try and sort out the machine mix up
 
Welcome to the ringer, we've all been through it.
Gotta become you're own practitioner.
Docs/Nurses read from script.

How are your numbers, A1c & FBG.
Big shout out
 
This reminds me of the last time my T2 dad came to visit us in NZ (Xmas 2019 pre covid). He brought a suitcase worth of testing strips and meters together with his (numerous) other medications. He was adopting low carb so we'd decided that I'd help him do some testing.

Two (maybe 3 meters) at least one of which was my T1 mother's (she died in 2012). Some completely out of date testing strips for that meter. Bottles and bottles of current testing strips for a meter that he had obviously left at home.

Luckily I had recently changed to a caresens dual from a caresens and just gave him my old caresens meter, plus strips.

Aged 91, he's currently off all diabetic meds and eats pretty low carb to control his levels.
 
SUNDAY at work rant - my turn
I am on a tandem pump and down to my last insertion device. My prescription for insulin comes via the GP and that is very efficient using my online app but the other stuff goes via a spreadsheet to the hospital admin lady then to the hospital pharmacy and finally to the UK distributor. Normally this lady is very efficient but it seems she is on leave (I suspect this is an NHS euphemism for had a nervous breakdown) and nobody is covering her job. I finally discovered that when I rang up and a stressed person said she would 'try' to get my order to pharmacy. That was Thursday meaning nothing will happen until Monday.
Very grateful for my NHS kit but the management of this process is crazily inefficient. Previously I could just ring up the supplier direct and they and my CCG, would trust me not to over order and sell pump bits on the E Bay I supppose.
This is surreal and wouldn't happen in a private company that wanted to stay in business but in the NHS they know I will be dealt with if I turn up at A & E comatose. Realistically I have to check my pen and basal insulin are still in date then try to get a prescription from the GP if they aren't.....I know it will result in great stress and much worse control.
 
Following on from my vent I called the product supplier who breezily told me, in a canny Geordie accent, that I could in fact order the supplies direct from them as they know who I am already. Better still they answer the phone on Sundays.
In my relief and with a blood sugar rising as the canula/tubing failed, I used my last device (before the new ones arrive) and the introductory needle has pulled away from the filament (part that remains in me) before I could press the insertion button. Pump people may know what I am talking about.
So it is doors to manual unless someone can re connect the 2 bits! A good way to find out if the slightly out of date insulin works I suppose.....
 
20 minutes…. Nope I got nuffink
 
Oh god Nicole, that is absolutely ****!!!!
I'm under NHS Greater Glasgow & Clyde and was set up as a user on their procurement system so I can order my omnipod dash pods direct.
I'll be thinking of you tonight & hope to god you don't have too much of a bumpy ride tonight & tomorrow xx

(Post edited by moderator: Removal of language alluding to swear word)
 
Last edited by a moderator:
sounds so frustrating and potentially a problem, I used to work in an NHS procurement team, wasn't allowed to handle the medicine purchasing but definitely have some stories. I would hope that things would improve but given how much the government likes to squeeze them to do more with less I expect the NHS is soon going to hit breaking point (surprised at times that it already hasn't), no one available to cover a job is just one of the things you'll see more of as they can't afford the extra staff to cover those roles (as you said it wouldn't happen in a private company because, whilst they love to stretch staff to near break point they don't go over that point and risk productivity).

I hope you do ok until you can resolve it.
 
Thanks for your kind wishes! Running at 20.4 so the ancient insulin in my pen isn't doing too well but will resort to large syringue and needle if necessary. Back to the 80s!
It was useful to find out that this needn't have happened and I can now go straight to supplier jsut as I used to with Roche pump'. Disquieting to know someone less pushy would just be left to it. I have let the diabetes admin people know of my solution in the hope that anyone else in the same pickle can be helped.
 
Hi, how have you been today?
 
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