Diabetic children in Scotland to be fitted with insulin pumps

It has been announced by the Scottish government that children and teenagers in the country with type 1 diabetes are to receive insulin pumps to help them manage their condition.
The NHS is to fit the pumps in a scheme being funded by a grant from the government to NHS boards to allow them to offer the devices to all those who are under 18 and suffering from type 1 diabetes. With diabetes a growing problem in Scotland, the health secretary Nicola Sturgeo, has said that a quarter of all patients with type 1 diabetes and who are under 18 will have the pumps – which allow for the right amount of the hormone insulin to be administered, so that patients do not require insulin injections – by 2013.
She pointed out “Insulin pumps mean freedom from having multiple insulin jags a day – giving Scotland’s youngest diabetics a normal childhood. By the end of March 2013, this treatment will be made available to the 480 children and teens struggling with type 1 diabetes who could benefit from it.”
Jane-Claire Judso, national director of the charity Diabetes UK Scotland, also commented “Insulin pumps are one of the most significant advances in medical technology, freeing people from the daily challenges of multiple injections, helping to reduce the risks of complications, raising quality of life and freeing up NHS time and resources.