testing strip refusal

Sadly this one is a bit of a postcode lottery. Quite a few people have been complaining that they have been moved to a different meter, or had their strips restricted as a cost saving exercise. In most cases, continual complaints to the surgery can get them to cave in and prescribe what you need. This can be made easier if you drive. You are legally obliged to test your blood sugars when you get behind the wheel of a motor vehicle, and to stop and test at regular intervals during your drive. Point this out to your surgery and they should hopefully stop being so difficult.

So when the gp explained that the strips were stopped what did they say about you testing from here on, are they going to issue you with a replacement meter for the one you lost and then prescribe the test strips? As someone who is using insulin you need the means to test your bg levels and you need to get this point across to your Dr.

I suspect they have you listed as Type 2 and as policy is not to provide strips to Type 2s, they stopped the prescription. Your immediate point of call is, as @noblehead says, to ensure they know you are insulin dependent and therefore it is a necessity that you have strips.

I am Type 2. My GP Has told me this week not to test blood sugar unless I am going to drive a long distance and rely on HbA1c readings as they give a truer picture

Sally49 said:

Hi all, I have a question about testing strips and how the prescription of these is managed by the health providers.
I lost my monitor provided by the GP and got a new Contour Next from this site. I used all my testing strips, and spoke to the GP surgery who put the strips on repeat. No strips showed up at Boots so I asked the GP who said this prescription item had been stopped...
No-one could tell me why and i ended up paying £23 for a new box. Obviously I don't want to do that every month!
Has anyone else had their diabetes prescription items, specifically test strips, stopped without warning or explanation?

Thoughts?

Sally

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I would write to the practice manager and ask why your life saving test strips were denied without any explanation. Point out that as you inject insulin and it could be fatal injecting the wrong amount of insulin then you are entitled to a clear explanation as to why it happened. If you drive also point out the legality of needing to test before you drive.

By rights, I think someone has to be notified first by letter or phonecall before any change is made regarding what medication is prescribed.
May be @donnellysdogs can clarify?

Practices should inform their patients of change in strips/meters etc.

However. From this it sounds as if the GP meter with the officially prescribed strips was lost.

Unless thereis a specific request for a specific meter to be used with specific test strips then the CCG.

In this case it sounds as if there has been some miscommunication and I would suggest that an appt with a DSN (prescribing) at GP practice is gained.

if OP says about buying a box a month then usage is very little.

What springs to my mind is ... If the OP has lost the given meter, how is GP meant to know until phone call. GP's don't have good knowledge of all the strips that their CCG's have banned or the 1400+ items that will have been redlined. Not GP fault.

To me it is a case of OP sitting with a DSN and talking...if T1 a back up meter should be accessible at all times... OP should have one. This needs to be discussed. The meter needs to be the same one or at least have a one off box of strips prescribed.

I don't think we can determine what went wong here only that the OP should go back and make appt with the Diabetic Nurse to sort out.. Really, don't bother with GPs.

The OP's profile says she is a T2 on insulin-promoting meds... so yes, she needs a meter for safety reasons. All the driving rules that apply to T1s would apply to her, as far as I know.

test strips advocacy pack from Diabetes UK
https://www.diabetes.org.uk/Documents/Advocacy/test-strips-advocacy-pack-0613.pdf

CatLadyNZ said:

The OP's profile says she is a T2 on insulin-promoting meds... so yes, she needs a meter for safety reasons. All the driving rules that apply to T1s would apply to her, as far as I know.

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On iphone profiles are not viewable so well or signature etc...

Still the only persons to sort is direct between DSN and OP.

Sally49 said:

Hi all, I have a question about testing strips and how the prescription of these is managed by the health providers.
I lost my monitor provided by the GP and got a new Contour Next from this site. I used all my testing strips, and spoke to the GP surgery who put the strips on repeat. No strips showed up at Boots so I asked the GP who said this prescription item had been stopped...
No-one could tell me why and i ended up paying £23 for a new box. Obviously I don't want to do that every month!
Has anyone else had their diabetes prescription items, specifically test strips, stopped without warning or explanation?

Thoughts?

Sally

Click to expand...

Are you actually on insulin? If not, pardon the question but what meds are you taking in order to have to test before you drive?

Lissy74 said:

Are you actually on insulin? If not, pardon the question but what meds are you taking in order to have to test before you drive?

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Any of the meds that promote insulin production e.g. Gliclazide!

CollieBoy said:

Any of the meds that promote insulin production e.g. Gliclazide!

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I am on gliclazide my GP wasn't keen on prescribing test strips, so I spoke to the hospital specialist who said I need to test my blood and will require these, they agreed to give me two packs of gluco nexus strips a month now.
Before I was told No.
It may be worth contacting the consultant specialist and ask them to tell your GP that you need them.

A T2 friend is in a similar position, she managed to get 2 boxes a month by pointing out to her GP re driving and hypos. I know it's not ideal but have you thought of another meter that has cheaper strips so you could top up/self fund. I'm a T1 and use the contour next, they're expensive so get a set supply a month and self fund a top up supply myself.