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Sugar Surfing

tim2000s said:
Funny you should mention BDEC. I was told this doesn't count! I elected to do it six or seven years ago when I met one of the better registrars at St George's.
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What???

I think this is a misreading of the NICE criteria? Afaik they just stipulate structured education, not DAFNE specifically.

Though as DAFNE is the only one with NICE-certified evidence of efficacy so maybe that's the explanation. :-(
 
Stephen Ponder has now released the eBook for Sugar Surfing, here: http://j.mp/SugarSurfingPDF1-1-PAY and a lot cheaper than the hardback at $11.99 (so about £8.50).

I've just bought it and read through it, and whilst it doesn't show me anything new, it does codify everything that I've been doing and seeing since I bought the Libre. I've even forwarded a copy to my DSN to have a read... Should solicit some fun responses!

What I liked, especially, is that he mentions that Insulin Stacking isn't really a big issue as long as you are aware of it. My thoughts exactly.

If you haven't tried it or haven't been looking, I'd say that the e-book is well worth the money and if you have some form of CGM, definitely gives you a better way to manage BG levels.
 
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tim2000s said:
I've never fallen in the right bucket for a pump. My Hba1Cs haven't been bad enough to qualify, I've historically not had an issue with injections and I've not really suffered from too many hypos (and overnight ones when on Lantus, if I've had them, haven't been bad enough to warrant calling out ambulances or left me incapacitated). The first time a pump was raised for me was when I changed clinics earlier this year, and there is still the issue of "Structured Education", which I feel is a waste of time, but is a box ticking exercise.

For the month prior to the clinic this time, I'm documenting everything I'm eating, in terms of carb content and protein content, all my insulin shots, blood tests/scans and giving the clinic a raft of documentation on the meet up that demonstrates:
  1. I know what I'm doing with carb (and protein) counting and;
  2. I don't need to spend five days on DAFNE learning how to do this - the time is better spend on someone else.
I'm sure I'll be greeted with "You manage so well on MDI you don't need a pump" when what would be the right response would be "You are so responsible that you're an ideal candidate for the pump".

The fact that I've taken my own responsibility for monitoring (with Libre) and managing my injection sites (with injection ports) seems to not be a factor and if anything, seems to go against me. That I'm interested in participating in early trials for Bionic Pancreas type technology as someone who thinks they can probably contribute something useful also seems to be ignored (or I am not talking to the right people).

[RANT]Due to the ludicrous way the NHS works, I can't get a form of medical insurance to pay for a pump. There's not really enough money in the system, but if I want one outside of the system, I have to go to a private GP to get the approval and then pay for all the supplies, and while I can cope with £150 per month for Libre and Injection ports, a pump is more like £1,000 with all the required supplies, which I can't do. This is why i think there is an issue with the way the NHS funding works.[/RANT]

Sorry about the rant, but it does frustrate me rather that if I was to compromise my care and condition, I'd be more likely to accelerate onto better therapy!
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This is really bad. I have wondered. If I moved back to the UK, already equipped with my pump, would they make me come off it again to force me to "qualify" in some way or would they just upgrade mine when its time came? Frankly, I'd fly back to Turkey regularly to get all my stuff (though I'd have to pretend to Medtronic that I'm still living here, apparently, because if distribution rights). Non-compliance. Second-nature to me when dealing with the NHS!
 
RuthW said:
This is really bad. I have wondered. If I moved back to the UK, already equipped with my pump, would they make me come off it again to force me to "qualify" in some way or would they just upgrade mine when its time came? Frankly, I'd fly back to Turkey regularly to get all my stuff (though I'd have to pretend to Medtronic that I'm still living here, apparently, because if distribution rights). Non-compliance. Second-nature to me when dealing with the NHS!
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If you have a pump, then you'd have to go through the rigmarole of sorting out funding, but it is unlikely to be taken away from you.
 
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