Monthly Archives: September 2018

Dreamer stage.

September 6, 2018 – 10:11 am

I’ve been reading, with great envy, about diabetes conferences on other continents lately. Specifically, the recent Australasian Diabetes Congress in Australia, and the upcoming EASD (European Association for the Study of Diabetes) conference in Europe.

Both of these appeal to me because they feature patient presentations and social media events either as part of the event or coordinated around the event. But there’s also an appeal to me because these gatherings are continental, and it makes me wonder: Why can’t we do something like that here? In North America?

Why can’t there be a North American Diabetes Congress? Why can’t there be a Pan-American Diabetes Summit?

I know what you’re thinking: Too much money! How are you going to get patients there? What do you think you can cover? What about meeting space, exhibit space, agendas, speakers?

Okay, I’m not an event organizer. But I can ask… why can’t this be done? North America, and the Americas including Central America and the Caribbean and even South America, cover a widely diverse group of people. Our challenges to get access to care, drugs, devices, and education are in many ways unique to our hemisphere.

There are also unique voices in each country that we can all learn from. They’re writing, broadcasting, and advocating in ways that I see but don’t completely understand yet. I’d like to see if some of what they do can translate to positive advocacy here too.

Right now, I’m only looking at the positive aspects of something like this. So don’t dump on me about how it’s impossible, companies won’t contribute, if companies do contribute I’m a sellout, people won’t be able to travel far, or the logistics are too difficult.

I’m still in the dreamer stage. I know this could be very good, even if I only have a rough idea of what “this” really is. So don’t harsh my mellow.

I refuse to think that we should be separated by distance or resources. I believe there is a lot we can learn from each other. I want to think bigger than diabetes type or country or age or language.

Why can’t we do it?

By StephenS | Posted in Events | Tagged , , | Comments (4)

Readiness realities.

September 4, 2018 – 11:28 am

I can remember when this blog was new, and I would write about anything and everything that inspired me, even a little bit, almost at the very moment that it inspired me. I would often participate in the weekly #DSMA Twitter chats and find something interesting to write about (see: My Week With Celiac).

That hasn’t happened for some time. However, last week’s chat (moderated by Chris Memering) did inspire me to think about, and share, my guidelines on emergency preparedness when it comes to diabetes.

Let’s get a couple of things out of the way here, right at the very beginning: I am not an expert at preparing for emergencies. Also, when I talk about emergencies, I’m not just talking about earthquakes or hurricanes or zombie apocalypses. You’ll want to prepare for those like you always would: plenty of extra food and water, ice, garlic and crosses and whatever else you want to have on hand just in case.

When I talk about emergencies, I’m also talking about the things we don’t always consider: specifically, medical emergencies, either our own or those affecting those close to us. I had an emergency appendectomy last year. A week and a half ago, The Great Spousal Unit took a terrible fall down a flight of stairs. What about those situations?

Some experts might disagree with these ideas of emergency preparedness. But there are two things we do that have been very helpful…

1. That diabetes stuff that I always have to put together when I travel? The extra insulin, the extra infusion sets, CGM sensors, insulin pens and pen needles, etc… I keep that at the ready every single day at home. If I have to get out of the house quickly, I can get it together in less than a minute.

I won’t be set for months with this stuff, but I should be okay for at least a couple of weeks if necessary. When I was in the hospital with a bad appendix (and later, recovering from same), I didn’t have to ask anyone to gather this and that for me. I just said, “Get the box, the insulin cooler next to it, add insulin, and bring it to me”.

2. I have all of my medical information written down. This includes the model of insulin pump I’m using (and the serial number). It includes all of the prescription drugs I take on a daily basis. It includes models of CGM sensors and infusion sets.

It also includes the names and phone numbers of my entire medical team: primary doctor, endocrinologist, etc. Even if they don’t need to be consulted in a crisis, they need to be informed.

I keep this information on my iPad at home, so it’s easily mobile if need be. But I also have it printed out, in case I can’t keep the iPad charged, it gets broken somehow, or no one thinks to try to access the information there.

Hey, I admit that I’m not the best at preparing for an emergency. These two tips may not seem like much. But they give me peace of mind, or at least one less thing to worry about when it comes to managing diabetes, and managing life, through an emergency.

By StephenS | Posted in Random Glucose | Tagged , , | Comments (1)