Shoot Up or Put Up

Here at ShootUp we believe a healthy dose of cynicism is as important a part of living well with diabetes as insulin, carb counting and a balanced helping of optimism. 

I’ve already admitted the cardinal sin of not being excited about a cure and questioned whether the sexiness of finding a cure distracts us from providing decent care today.  Now it seems that there are more super cynical Brits around.

Fellow Brit Caroline is a little underwhelmed by the hype around the artificial pancreas. I’ve been meaning to write an article about the issues facing the artificial pancreas for a while, but this one is a really well thought out look at the reality of the situation that I certainly couldn’t improve on. Enjoy!

Before we get on to the main article suggested by the intentionally provocative headline, first things first – happy New Year to all our beloved readers. I hope you all had a lovely Christmas (or equivalent winter-based festival) and a fab Hogmanay. I certainly did; hurrah!

Anyway, avid reader Rachel brought my attention to this article in the Express newspaper about insulin syringes and airport security. For our non-UK readers who might not know of it, the Express, in my humble opinion, is a worthless rag with horrible, ill-researched journalism (if you can call it that) that results in a paper that is barely worth using to line the cat’s litter tray.

Essentially the jist of the story is that following the Christmas Day bomb scare thing a journalist (if you can call him that) apparently “evaded security” by taking a insulin pen through the security checks at Schiphol airport. After successfully getting airside, the scaremongering article notes that said journalist could then have used the insulin filled pen to…uhm…uhm…not do very much. Oh. Perhaps that’s why security ignored his small vial of insulin in the first place.

I’ve written about airport security before and I’ve never had any problem with taking insulin, needles, finger-pokers and what-not through airports. I never bother telling anyone I have a bag full of insulin and I’ve never been stopped. My concealed pistol has, however, been slightly more problematic. With talk of security being beefed-up (including not allowing passengers access to hand-luggage during the last hour of flights, etc.) I wonder if the pancreatically-challenged hoards might have problems in future?

I suspect we probably won’t – after all there’s not much you can actually do with a syringe – a few small vials of insulin and a couple of packets of test strips could hardly pose a security threat. So I think the Express’ article completely missed the point in two major ways. Firstly, the baddie on Christmas Day also had a load of explosives strapped in his undies – surely that being missed is a little more of an issue than a syringe. And secondly it’s worth noting that not all terrorist attacks happen on planes. The London 7/7 and Madrid attacks were carried out on trains and buses but there’s no talk of security scans on the number 44 bus to Balerno. In other words a determined terrorist will always get through no matter what levels of security are imposed – so why take it out on us innocent diabetics?

Anyway, I’d be interested to hear if any of our readers have had any issues with security since Christmas Day (or indeed, ever). And finally, can any of you diabetic geeks work out what brand of insulin the reporter has in the pictures - I can’t. Answers in the comments below!

Welcome to 2010.  A brand new year, a fresh start. And a shiny new lancet in my finger pricker. I’m not reknowned for remembering to change my lancets but I always make the effort to start the new year with a sharp new dagger to spear my finger.

Happy new lancet to you all!

Just a quick post to let diabetic-horror-movie fans that Tom Craig’s Sugar Drop (which I burbled on about here) is having its premier tonight at the QUAD in Derby. So if you’re in the Derby area check it out – I’ve seen a preview copy (review coming soon, film fans!) and it’s bloomin’ great!

Click here for details about tickets and click here for information about the film itself.

I spent a lovely Saturday evening in a pub in Edinburgh with some of our readers. Amongst other things we chatted about local diabetes care.

Tim has a letter from the Chief Executive of NHS Lothian telling him that they deliver the best diabetes care in Scotland. Marvellous. When they deliver diabetes care that meets all the national guidelines they can have a gold star. Until then, being the best of a bad lot isn’t something to celebrate.

Around the table in the pub were three people on an 18 month pump waiting list, people who hadn’t even been on a DAFNE course, and a terrifying anecdote I really hope isn’t true about there being an 11 year wait for access to DAFNE training in Glasgow. An eleven year wait for basic education to help you live with a serious chronic disease? It’d surely be easier just to chop off your own feet immediately and give up.

I travelled home on Sunday night pondering what could be done to improve the situation. I’m a big fan of the NHS but it works best when people like us drive it to deliver. I’m hoping those people sat around the table on Saturday night will be going to speak to their NHS healthcare funders to encourage them to start delivering.

Then, like an apparition, I saw this on the interweb “New Edinburgh diabetes lab brings promise” . Aha I thought, they’ve cracked it. They’ve worked out how to deliver excellent diabetes services at an affordable cost to the Scottish masses. Soon my fellow drinkers will be accessing excellent care rather than whiling away their years on waiting lists.

This doesn’t happen often, but I was wrong. Edinburgh is getting a new lab to provide “revolutionary diabetes treatment for sufferers of type 1”. This life changing place will be the Scottish Islet Isolation Laboratory.

Marvellous stuff. I’ve nothing against progress and I’m sure one day islets may/may not deliver some/lots of benefit to some/all of us living with diabetes.

I do wonder though what makes you prioritise something like a new islet cell lab over delivering great healthcare to people struggling to live with diabetes today? Would it be cynical of me to suggest that islets are just a little bit sexier than delivering basic education and healthcare? That perhaps “I cured diabetes” looks better on your CV than “I helped Rachel manage her HbA1c and live a long, healthy life”?

Of course we need investment in future treatments for diabetes, but we also need to quickly and effectively use the proven treatments we already have. Forgive me if I’m not bouncing off the walls with excitement over this new lab. I may be dull but seeing people being given the help they need today to live long, healthy, happy lives with diabetes is what really floats my boat.

Nothing to do with diabetes. Disgraceful!

As well as writing your soaraway Shoot Up I read a lot of other diabetic blogs. Generally they’re interesting, insightful and useful; however it really gets my goat when people use their platforms to promote some other service or product that is entirely unrelated to the topic of their blog. Frankly, it’s unprofessional, amateurish and downright dishonest – it cheats dutiful readers.

With this in mind, therefore, I’m not going to use your soaraway Shoot Up to promote my wife’s handbag business stripykat. The fact that each handbag is handmade & unique and that they are incredibly good value for money and ideal for Christmas gifts is neither here nor there.

I also refuse to mention that stripykat has been featured in British Vogue or that Katie is one of only twenty Scottish designers currently displaying their products in the National Museum of Scotland’s renowned “Gifted” exhibition.

Only the shoddiest of blogs would go onto say that stripykat also sells a great selection of unique iPod & MP3 holders and camera cases in addition to hairbands and scarves, which are great accessories that will beautifully set off your favourite outfit.

It would also be deeply unprincipled to say that stripykat ships worldwide (that includes you USA!) for only GBP£5.00 and securely accepts payments via PayPal in your local currency.

No, I’m not going to do that – it would be wrong. Move along there, nothing to see.

And while Tim is tinkering and tippling his way through WDD, I thought I’d follow Cherise’s lead and go blue in time for the Diabetes UK North West Family Event today.

Doesn’t time fly? In a couple of weeks its World Diabetes Day again.

There’s lots of good work going on around the world and it’s nice to see the major UK diabetes charities joining forces to work together to raise awareness of diabetes on 14th November – Diabetes UK ; JDRF;  Diabetes Research & Wellness Foundation ;  Insulin Dependent Diabetes Trust ;  INPUT; and the UK Children with Diabetes Advocacy Group .

How can you get involved?

• Join thousands of others pledging to Get Serious about diabetes.
• Leave a message for Gordon Brown asking the UK Government to increase research funding for type 1 diabetes.
• Turn something blue. Last year in the UK alone we managed to light up more than 25 buildings with blue light on 14th November. This year we’re aiming for more. If you have a suitable specimen locally that you think would look rather fetching in blue, here’s some guidance on how to encourage it’s owners to support WDD.  
• Go blue online. On a more local level, why not turn your Facebook, Twitter or Myspace profile blue on 14th November to support WDD. For the technically inept like me, here’s how to do it.
• Go viral. Finally why not help to create the world’s longest viral highlighting the life long nature of diabetes.

I’ll be spending World Diabetes Day talking to parents of kids who’ve been recently diagnosed with diabetes. What’ll you be doing to mark our day?

As everyone knows, all the cool kids go to the annual(ish) Lothian Diabetes Representative Group’s annual conference. This year it’s being held at Napier Craiglockhart Campus in Edinburgh on Saturday 31st October 2009.

There’s a bunch of workshops (some of which look quite interesting), some discussions and some speeches (some of which look quite dull). For a crisp tenner you get all this along with a slightly disappointing lunch. What could be better? I’ll be going and if you are too drop me an email and we can sit at back and heckle with all the other cools kids. Yay!

You can download a booking form and if you have any queries about said conference  you can email Bonnie, who’s been lumbered with getting emails about it from the great unwashed, at Bonnie.Crichton@luht.scot.nhs.uk

Scottish readers (and I know you exist) will be interested that Scotland’s SIGN Diabetes Management Guidelines Consultation is now taking place. Aileen at IPAG Scotland reminds us that any responses from the pancreatically challenged hoards need to be submitted before 16th October 2009.

In particular, the section on pump therapy (4.3.1) looks like it was written back in the Dark Ages of diabetes care and isn’t all that helpful to anyone in Scotland considering taking up pump therapy in the next ten years.

So have a look at the draft guidelines at http://www.sign.ac.uk/guidelines/drafts/diabetes.html (especially that thrilling 4.3.1 bit) and bash in a response giving them your views. Our beloved health authorities need our help and guidance to make sure they get it right!