Recent Posts by marke - DAFNE Online

Jul 19, 2017

marke 657 posts

woah there a minute, the Libre doesn't show you accurate BG so using it as the basis to make corrections is potentially dangerous. It measures inter-cell fluid BG NOT blood BG and so is only a 'guide' . Whilst I agree that it would be concerning if your BG appears to stay at 11. You should do a normal BG test and base it on that. We can have too much information and make too many corrections based on this information. Easy to say I know, also easy to say but my cure for all this was a pump an advantage that I know NovarapidBoi also has. Unofrtunately getting them is a post code lottery. Hover if you get the chance , grab it as I believe they make a huge difference.

Jul 2, 2017

marke 657 posts

Topic: General Discussion / Kings Refresher Days

All,
If you are a King's DAFNE Graduate then we'd like to invite you to one of our DAFNE Refresher Days, which we run throughout the year. See here . for poster and dates.

They are for any King's College Hospital patients who have attended a DAFNE course in the past. The days are an ideal way to refresh carbohydrate counting and insulin dose adjustment skills, with morning workshops focusing on these areas for everyone and the afternoon sessions being a choice of two workshops including exercise, eating out and alcohol, pump management and emotional well-being.

The days are always well evaluated, with people enjoying being able to meet and chat to other people with type 1 diabetes as well as the pharmaceutical reps and charities we have supporting the event.

The day also has exciting talks by members of the team on new diabetes research developments, a focus on behaviour and beliefs and an "On The Sofa" session where you get to pose your questions to the team.

For further information, or to book your spot please contact the Kings Team on [email protected] or ring 0203 299 1812 with your information.

Jul 2, 2017

marke 657 posts

Topic: General Discussion / DAFNE Follow-Up Course - No Help?

sorry for the delayed reply, I probably passed out with Shock when I read you had not seen a consultant for two years !!! Which hospital are you under in Maidstone ? I live in Ashford just down the road from you and see consultants at two hospitals at the moment ( sorry). ALL T1's should be seen by a consultant ever 12 months and its ridiculous that you are being seen by no one. I don't accept staff shortages as an excuse. Are you a member of Diabetes UK ? I would let them know about this and if you are not a member I will let the know. Their campaigning manager for the South-East wants to come visit my local group soon and this is exactly the kind of issue that they should be campaigning about.

Jul 2, 2017

marke 657 posts

Topic: General Discussion / Blood sugar spiking between 3am and 7am

Hi,
What BI insulin are you taking and do you split doses i.e take two BI injections a day ? This will help us to advise. It 'could' be something called Dawn Phenomenon however without more information its impossible to suggest anything. It would be useful to know your QA insulin as well and how often you inject this ? ( in theory before meals, but other times ? )

Jun 23, 2017

marke 657 posts

Topic: General Discussion / DAFNE Follow-Up Course - No Help?

Hi,
I will feed this back to the DAFNE people, particularly the consultants I'm sure they will be interested in this statement from a DAFNE trained HCP. For me the whole point is that DAFNE does teach you to handle stuff like this and a 'confident' HCP should have been able to help you with this. I think most of us have a varying routine, perhaps NOT as varied as you but its all degrees of the same problem. If we all did no exercise to keep things simple we wouldn't be helping ourselves in the long run would we ;-)

Being old school, I agree with Warwick note everything down and build up a picture. You won't get it right all the time even with this information, sorry that's just life but it will help. One of the main principles of DAFNE is to record stuff and look for patterns, even in a lifestyle like yours and that's what they should have told you including adjusting for exercise. This is probably no help but what helped me a lot is going on a pump, but you need a good consultant for that who will refer you ;-)

Jun 9, 2017

marke 657 posts

Topic: Site Development / intrusive predictions

Sorry but this is nothing to do with the site, its a function of the browser you are using. What browser are you using ? and is this on a PC or a mobile device. We might be able to suggest something if we understand these things.

Jun 9, 2017

marke 657 posts

Topic: General Discussion / Basal/bolus insulin proportions

Your daughter is not unusual , none of us are usual. Also DAFNE advises nothing of the kind. What it teaches us is to adjust our Basal levels to what is right for US. It is probably true that often people take too much Basal before DAFNE, as part of the course is to teach you how to work out the correct level of basal for you and also to realise this is not something that will remain the same for ever more. It's hard to explain the DAFNE approach without doing the course as its a collection of things and doing parts in isolation may cause more harm than good.

May 22, 2017

marke 657 posts

Topic: General Discussion / Painful Libre

I never experienced any pain at all with it. apart from financial Very Happy

. It is pretty passive so its unusual to have a reaction, unless its to the sticky stuff that hold it on. The sensor tube only goes a little into the skin . It is a good device so I would just hope it doesn't get more painful. If it does take it out and report it to them, any patient reactions should be logged. No point making yourself potentially ill if you are reacting to tit.

Apr 18, 2017

marke 657 posts

Topic: General Discussion / Accu-check Aviva Expert meter

Contact Accu-Chek via www.accu-chek.co.uk/contactus

I am contacting you from Roche Diabetes Care as the product manager for the Accu-Chek Aviva Expert bolus advisor system. The following stream has come to our attention ...
http://www.dafneonline.co.uk/forums/1/topics/2957?page=1

We would like to offer a correction to the post dated 08 Jan.2017 by AMcD, DAFNE Graduate from Galway as this advises the originator of the query that the test strips have been discontinued. That is definitely not the case and the Aviva test strips used with the system are definitely still available on prescription in the UK and Ireland.

Patients being denied test strips of their choice should refer to the latest NICE guidance for Type 1 or 2 and download the advocacy pack from the Diabetes UK website ...
https://www.diabetes.org.uk/How_we_help/Helpline/Your-rights/

Mar 28, 2017

marke 657 posts

Topic: Site Development / Any plans to serve pages over HTTPS?

So, After a few headaches and some downtime we now support https. Thanks go to Alistair for pointing me in the direction of lets encrypt. We are still supporting both http and https so you can use either at the moment. Eventually I will try to re-direct http requests to the http site but I need a rest now ;-) Upgrading websites is really not as easy as it should be when you do it in your own time ( that's both Simon and me, not just me !). I will add a news item to the site to let everyone know they can now use https and get rid of the browser warnings about security.

Mar 26, 2017

marke 657 posts

Topic: General Discussion / Worth doing DAFNE?

I'm with you Simon ! I never would have guessed 8 years or so ago when I did it where it would lead me. I met interesting people on the course and have continued to meet Diabetics and Medical professionals since then that have taught me more than I ever would have guessed there was to know about Diabetes. It is difficult I appreciate for anyone to do the course, even without the commuting but I think most people get a lot out of the course in many ways.

Ok sales pitch over Cool

Mar 26, 2017

marke 657 posts

Topic: General Discussion / High BG mid morning

The problem for me with the NICE guidelines are they cover ALL diabetics and as ALL diabetics know we are all different ! Personally I would never worry about the 90 minutes target. I may experiment with a CGM to change Bolus times to move them further before a meal but thats about as far as a would or could go. If I miss the target cest a vie I wouldn't worry about it. As I said in my first post, we have a bit missing so with current technologies we are never going to be the same as 'normal' people, we can aim to be but if our aim is not true its just the way it is.

Mar 26, 2017

marke 657 posts

Topic: General Discussion / Worth doing DAFNE?

Hi, Without boring you rigid with the details. Its political , the materials are 'owned' by one particular NHS trust who have copyright on them. For the next version of DAFNE being developed now, I hope they won't make the same mistakes and one part of the NHS won't own it but it will be owned by the programme. I'm not sure I will hold my breath though, ALL big organisations run on bureaucracy not just he NHS Sad

Mar 25, 2017

marke 657 posts

Topic: General Discussion / High BG mid morning

Hi neither of you say if how long you have been using you Abbott devices ? Is it possible this has always happened but that you were never aware of it because you never had the tools to monitor it before. Also you have to accept you don't have a normal pancreas anymore, so your BG's are never going to be like a normal persons. There are a number of other possible factors but you should discus this with your Diabetes Team to get a proper answer. Some cereals will have a longer lasting effect on BG's, a lot of people are more resistant to insulin in the mornings due to Dawn phenomenon related issues. finally the Abbott Freestyle is an inter-cellular BG measure NOT a blood glucose measure and is only a guide not the same as a BG reading. As I say things to discuss with a Diabetes Team.

Mar 25, 2017

marke 657 posts

Topic: General Discussion / Worth doing DAFNE?

I'm probably not the best person to answer since I help run the site so I'm evidently biased, however I would say yes. There are loads of fringe benefits to doing the course including being in a room with a group of fellow diabetics and so realising you are not alone with any issues you have and everyone has the same problems. It also joins the dots over a lot of diabetic related things including carb counting and not over compensating for highs and lows in BG's.

I'm afraid you can't view the course materials unless you have done the course. You have to sign a contract in blood and offer up your first born as security Evil or Very Mad

I'm only half joking here, they are VERY protective of the materials and we had to sign legal documents to host them on the site.

Mar 16, 2017

marke 657 posts

Topic: Site Development / Any plans to serve pages over HTTPS?

Hi, thanks it does look as though this would work. I will try to set something up to test it on our site, I just need to ensure that all devices can connect without an issue or we might have to change the site to use https on supported devices. This looks to be a new operation and is unlike the free one we currently use ( for email) that is not in the trusted root authority store. It too needs to be updated regularly but we can live with that since its worth it if its free. I will update this thread once I have tested it and ensured it works as expected on most devices.

Mar 15, 2017

marke 657 posts

Topic: Site Development / Any plans to serve pages over HTTPS?

Hi, Sorry I have already explained why we cannot get a certificate. A free certificate is not an option because free certificate providers are not in the trusted root certificates store in windows and have to be manually added. Sorry if this seems to be a bit blunt but I do work in IT and have involvement in security. I know how certificates and security work and get audited on these things every 6 months. If someone produces the cash I will be more than happy to do it. We did try to get financial help from Diabetes UK but they were not interested and the NHS don't have the ability to give us money unless we are a limited company which also means a load of financial costs. We run the site in our spare time with no money, This is not a sob story, we are happy to do it, we just have no financial resources.

Mar 13, 2017

marke 657 posts

Topic: Site Development / Any plans to serve pages over HTTPS?

Hi,
A fair point but... To switch to a HTTPS login we would need to buy a public security certificate which costs in the region of Â£150. We run the site in our spare time on a voluntary basis so don't really have the funds to spend that much on a certificate, If we could find some sponsorship to pay for it, it would be easier to do. We both work in IT and I am also partly involved in security so its not due to a lack of understanding, more a cash verses risk scenario, There should be almost zero personal information on the site so a password being hacked will expose very little information apart from email addresses. Whilst not saying this is not a risk, its not really sufficient to justify the costs......

Feb 20, 2017

marke 657 posts

Topic: General Discussion / forum issues

All,
apologies for the problems with the site forums recently. As you can see if you are reading this , its all fixed and working again. Hopefully Simon will also get the alerts going to me as well when problems occur because although the error page said we had been informed that there was an issue, we had not been informed and had no idea that there was an issue.

Dec 29, 2016

marke 657 posts

Topic: General Discussion / Accu-check Aviva Expert meter

Hi,
Sorry for the delayed response, xmas and all that ;-) Your GP should NOT be doing this, it is NOT NHS policy . If you are a member of Diabetes UK I would contact them and or your local Clinical Commissioning Group ( CCG) and ask for an explanation. I don't know where you are in the country so its hard to give specific advice. Only Type 2 diabetics have the meter type they use 'imposed' on them not Type 1s. You should also be under a hospital to for your Diabetes check-ups so I would also contact them and explain what is going on. I have heard about this happening but not in my part of the UK ( South-East Kent) , its not acceptable and you don't have to accept it !!

Nov 21, 2016

marke 657 posts

Topic: General Discussion / Would you like to be involved in research?

Researchers at the University of Sheffield have designed a questionnaire to find out how much self-management impacts on people living with diabetes. They are testing their questionnaire at the moment, and are looking for volunteers to complete their online survey. Anyone can complete the survey, as long as you live in the UK and are over 18 years old. Click here to access the survey. https://healthsurvey.shef.ac.uk/hasmid

The project is funded by The Health Foundation, and has full ethics approval. Participants who complete the online questionnaire can choose to enter a prize draw to win a Â£50 shopping voucher. They have prizes for every 50 completed questionnaires.

Nov 10, 2016

marke 657 posts

Topic: General Discussion / Campaigning Against Hospitals Dropping DAFNE

I have answered on another thread but a quick statement. The replacement course is called DAFNEPlus and they have only just been awarded the grant to run it. Simon and I are involved as Technical Patients because we run DAFNEOnline. I am happy to share information on it, the people heading it are not secretive and want patient involvement. Hopefully things will start developing with it over the next few months,

Nov 10, 2016

marke 657 posts

Topic: General Discussion / Campaigning Against Hospitals Dropping DAFNE

sadly its not about attendance its about finance. The centres have to pay the DAFNE Programme fees for being allowed to run the course. Many centres have decided to invent their own courses that they don't have to pay for. In Kent its called KATIE ( Kent Adult Type 1 Education, I think ) and is similar to DAFNE. It has a waiting list of about 18 months. Quite a number of centres have gone solo over the last few years. A national programme would be better but in an organisation like the NHS bureaucracy trumps everything else, so Centres fall away without any real change in approach. But hey enough of my bitter twisted views Twisted Evil

Nov 10, 2016

marke 657 posts

Topic: General Discussion / Printing the Sick-day Rules

yes it has but.... they wouldn't let us have a copy to put on the site. After 2 years of complaining to everyone who would listen we finally got the 2014 copies of the 5 day course, 5x1 day course and pump course. All I have to do now is convert them into a format compatible with the site. It would be easier if they tracked changes between versions but they don't. I hope to have the 5 day course on the site by xmas and the others as soon as I can get them done.....

Jul 19, 2017 marke 657 posts	Topic: General Discussion / Libre woah there a minute, the Libre doesn't show you accurate BG so using it as the basis to make corrections is potentially dangerous. It measures inter-cell fluid BG NOT blood BG and so is only a 'guide' . Whilst I agree that it would be concerning if your BG appears to stay at 11. You should do a normal BG test and base it on that. We can have too much information and make too many corrections based on this information. Easy to say I know, also easy to say but my cure for all this was a pump an advantage that I know NovarapidBoi also has. Unofrtunately getting them is a post code lottery. Hover if you get the chance , grab it as I believe they make a huge difference.

Jul 2, 2017 marke 657 posts	Topic: General Discussion / Kings Refresher Days All, If you are a King's DAFNE Graduate then we'd like to invite you to one of our DAFNE Refresher Days, which we run throughout the year. See here . for poster and dates. They are for any King's College Hospital patients who have attended a DAFNE course in the past. The days are an ideal way to refresh carbohydrate counting and insulin dose adjustment skills, with morning workshops focusing on these areas for everyone and the afternoon sessions being a choice of two workshops including exercise, eating out and alcohol, pump management and emotional well-being. The days are always well evaluated, with people enjoying being able to meet and chat to other people with type 1 diabetes as well as the pharmaceutical reps and charities we have supporting the event. The day also has exciting talks by members of the team on new diabetes research developments, a focus on behaviour and beliefs and an "On The Sofa" session where you get to pose your questions to the team. For further information, or to book your spot please contact the Kings Team on [email protected] or ring 0203 299 1812 with your information.

Jul 2, 2017 marke 657 posts	Topic: General Discussion / DAFNE Follow-Up Course - No Help? sorry for the delayed reply, I probably passed out with Shock when I read you had not seen a consultant for two years !!! Which hospital are you under in Maidstone ? I live in Ashford just down the road from you and see consultants at two hospitals at the moment ( sorry). ALL T1's should be seen by a consultant ever 12 months and its ridiculous that you are being seen by no one. I don't accept staff shortages as an excuse. Are you a member of Diabetes UK ? I would let them know about this and if you are not a member I will let the know. Their campaigning manager for the South-East wants to come visit my local group soon and this is exactly the kind of issue that they should be campaigning about.

Jul 2, 2017 marke 657 posts	Topic: General Discussion / Blood sugar spiking between 3am and 7am Hi, What BI insulin are you taking and do you split doses i.e take two BI injections a day ? This will help us to advise. It 'could' be something called Dawn Phenomenon however without more information its impossible to suggest anything. It would be useful to know your QA insulin as well and how often you inject this ? ( in theory before meals, but other times ? )

Jun 23, 2017 marke 657 posts	Topic: General Discussion / DAFNE Follow-Up Course - No Help? Hi, I will feed this back to the DAFNE people, particularly the consultants I'm sure they will be interested in this statement from a DAFNE trained HCP. For me the whole point is that DAFNE does teach you to handle stuff like this and a 'confident' HCP should have been able to help you with this. I think most of us have a varying routine, perhaps NOT as varied as you but its all degrees of the same problem. If we all did no exercise to keep things simple we wouldn't be helping ourselves in the long run would we ;-) Being old school, I agree with Warwick note everything down and build up a picture. You won't get it right all the time even with this information, sorry that's just life but it will help. One of the main principles of DAFNE is to record stuff and look for patterns, even in a lifestyle like yours and that's what they should have told you including adjusting for exercise. This is probably no help but what helped me a lot is going on a pump, but you need a good consultant for that who will refer you ;-)

Jun 9, 2017 marke 657 posts	Topic: Site Development / intrusive predictions Sorry but this is nothing to do with the site, its a function of the browser you are using. What browser are you using ? and is this on a PC or a mobile device. We might be able to suggest something if we understand these things.

Jun 9, 2017 marke 657 posts	Topic: General Discussion / Basal/bolus insulin proportions Your daughter is not unusual , none of us are usual. Also DAFNE advises nothing of the kind. What it teaches us is to adjust our Basal levels to what is right for US. It is probably true that often people take too much Basal before DAFNE, as part of the course is to teach you how to work out the correct level of basal for you and also to realise this is not something that will remain the same for ever more. It's hard to explain the DAFNE approach without doing the course as its a collection of things and doing parts in isolation may cause more harm than good.

May 22, 2017 marke 657 posts	Topic: General Discussion / Painful Libre I never experienced any pain at all with it. apart from financial . It is pretty passive so its unusual to have a reaction, unless its to the sticky stuff that hold it on. The sensor tube only goes a little into the skin . It is a good device so I would just hope it doesn't get more painful. If it does take it out and report it to them, any patient reactions should be logged. No point making yourself potentially ill if you are reacting to tit.

Apr 18, 2017 marke 657 posts	Topic: General Discussion / Accu-check Aviva Expert meter Contact Accu-Chek via www.accu-chek.co.uk/contactus I am contacting you from Roche Diabetes Care as the product manager for the Accu-Chek Aviva Expert bolus advisor system. The following stream has come to our attention ... http://www.dafneonline.co.uk/forums/1/topics/2957?page=1 We would like to offer a correction to the post dated 08 Jan.2017 by AMcD, DAFNE Graduate from Galway as this advises the originator of the query that the test strips have been discontinued. That is definitely not the case and the Aviva test strips used with the system are definitely still available on prescription in the UK and Ireland. Patients being denied test strips of their choice should refer to the latest NICE guidance for Type 1 or 2 and download the advocacy pack from the Diabetes UK website ... https://www.diabetes.org.uk/How_we_help/Helpline/Your-rights/

Mar 28, 2017 marke 657 posts	Topic: Site Development / Any plans to serve pages over HTTPS? So, After a few headaches and some downtime we now support https. Thanks go to Alistair for pointing me in the direction of lets encrypt. We are still supporting both http and https so you can use either at the moment. Eventually I will try to re-direct http requests to the http site but I need a rest now ;-) Upgrading websites is really not as easy as it should be when you do it in your own time ( that's both Simon and me, not just me !). I will add a news item to the site to let everyone know they can now use https and get rid of the browser warnings about security.

Mar 26, 2017 marke 657 posts	Topic: General Discussion / Worth doing DAFNE? I'm with you Simon ! I never would have guessed 8 years or so ago when I did it where it would lead me. I met interesting people on the course and have continued to meet Diabetics and Medical professionals since then that have taught me more than I ever would have guessed there was to know about Diabetes. It is difficult I appreciate for anyone to do the course, even without the commuting but I think most people get a lot out of the course in many ways. Ok sales pitch over

Mar 26, 2017 marke 657 posts	Topic: General Discussion / High BG mid morning The problem for me with the NICE guidelines are they cover ALL diabetics and as ALL diabetics know we are all different ! Personally I would never worry about the 90 minutes target. I may experiment with a CGM to change Bolus times to move them further before a meal but thats about as far as a would or could go. If I miss the target cest a vie I wouldn't worry about it. As I said in my first post, we have a bit missing so with current technologies we are never going to be the same as 'normal' people, we can aim to be but if our aim is not true its just the way it is.

Mar 26, 2017 marke 657 posts	Topic: General Discussion / Worth doing DAFNE? Hi, Without boring you rigid with the details. Its political , the materials are 'owned' by one particular NHS trust who have copyright on them. For the next version of DAFNE being developed now, I hope they won't make the same mistakes and one part of the NHS won't own it but it will be owned by the programme. I'm not sure I will hold my breath though, ALL big organisations run on bureaucracy not just he NHS

Mar 25, 2017 marke 657 posts	Topic: General Discussion / High BG mid morning Hi neither of you say if how long you have been using you Abbott devices ? Is it possible this has always happened but that you were never aware of it because you never had the tools to monitor it before. Also you have to accept you don't have a normal pancreas anymore, so your BG's are never going to be like a normal persons. There are a number of other possible factors but you should discus this with your Diabetes Team to get a proper answer. Some cereals will have a longer lasting effect on BG's, a lot of people are more resistant to insulin in the mornings due to Dawn phenomenon related issues. finally the Abbott Freestyle is an inter-cellular BG measure NOT a blood glucose measure and is only a guide not the same as a BG reading. As I say things to discuss with a Diabetes Team.

Mar 25, 2017 marke 657 posts	Topic: General Discussion / Worth doing DAFNE? I'm probably not the best person to answer since I help run the site so I'm evidently biased, however I would say yes. There are loads of fringe benefits to doing the course including being in a room with a group of fellow diabetics and so realising you are not alone with any issues you have and everyone has the same problems. It also joins the dots over a lot of diabetic related things including carb counting and not over compensating for highs and lows in BG's. I'm afraid you can't view the course materials unless you have done the course. You have to sign a contract in blood and offer up your first born as security I'm only half joking here, they are VERY protective of the materials and we had to sign legal documents to host them on the site.

Mar 16, 2017 marke 657 posts	Topic: Site Development / Any plans to serve pages over HTTPS? Hi, thanks it does look as though this would work. I will try to set something up to test it on our site, I just need to ensure that all devices can connect without an issue or we might have to change the site to use https on supported devices. This looks to be a new operation and is unlike the free one we currently use ( for email) that is not in the trusted root authority store. It too needs to be updated regularly but we can live with that since its worth it if its free. I will update this thread once I have tested it and ensured it works as expected on most devices.

Mar 15, 2017 marke 657 posts	Topic: Site Development / Any plans to serve pages over HTTPS? Hi, Sorry I have already explained why we cannot get a certificate. A free certificate is not an option because free certificate providers are not in the trusted root certificates store in windows and have to be manually added. Sorry if this seems to be a bit blunt but I do work in IT and have involvement in security. I know how certificates and security work and get audited on these things every 6 months. If someone produces the cash I will be more than happy to do it. We did try to get financial help from Diabetes UK but they were not interested and the NHS don't have the ability to give us money unless we are a limited company which also means a load of financial costs. We run the site in our spare time with no money, This is not a sob story, we are happy to do it, we just have no financial resources.

Mar 13, 2017 marke 657 posts	Topic: Site Development / Any plans to serve pages over HTTPS? Hi, A fair point but... To switch to a HTTPS login we would need to buy a public security certificate which costs in the region of Â£150. We run the site in our spare time on a voluntary basis so don't really have the funds to spend that much on a certificate, If we could find some sponsorship to pay for it, it would be easier to do. We both work in IT and I am also partly involved in security so its not due to a lack of understanding, more a cash verses risk scenario, There should be almost zero personal information on the site so a password being hacked will expose very little information apart from email addresses. Whilst not saying this is not a risk, its not really sufficient to justify the costs......

Feb 20, 2017 marke 657 posts	Topic: General Discussion / forum issues All, apologies for the problems with the site forums recently. As you can see if you are reading this , its all fixed and working again. Hopefully Simon will also get the alerts going to me as well when problems occur because although the error page said we had been informed that there was an issue, we had not been informed and had no idea that there was an issue.

Dec 29, 2016 marke 657 posts	Topic: General Discussion / Accu-check Aviva Expert meter Hi, Sorry for the delayed response, xmas and all that ;-) Your GP should NOT be doing this, it is NOT NHS policy . If you are a member of Diabetes UK I would contact them and or your local Clinical Commissioning Group ( CCG) and ask for an explanation. I don't know where you are in the country so its hard to give specific advice. Only Type 2 diabetics have the meter type they use 'imposed' on them not Type 1s. You should also be under a hospital to for your Diabetes check-ups so I would also contact them and explain what is going on. I have heard about this happening but not in my part of the UK ( South-East Kent) , its not acceptable and you don't have to accept it !!

Nov 21, 2016 marke 657 posts	Topic: General Discussion / Would you like to be involved in research? Researchers at the University of Sheffield have designed a questionnaire to find out how much self-management impacts on people living with diabetes. They are testing their questionnaire at the moment, and are looking for volunteers to complete their online survey. Anyone can complete the survey, as long as you live in the UK and are over 18 years old. Click here to access the survey. https://healthsurvey.shef.ac.uk/hasmid The project is funded by The Health Foundation, and has full ethics approval. Participants who complete the online questionnaire can choose to enter a prize draw to win a Â£50 shopping voucher. They have prizes for every 50 completed questionnaires.

Nov 10, 2016 marke 657 posts	Topic: General Discussion / Campaigning Against Hospitals Dropping DAFNE I have answered on another thread but a quick statement. The replacement course is called DAFNEPlus and they have only just been awarded the grant to run it. Simon and I are involved as Technical Patients because we run DAFNEOnline. I am happy to share information on it, the people heading it are not secretive and want patient involvement. Hopefully things will start developing with it over the next few months,

Nov 10, 2016 marke 657 posts	Topic: General Discussion / Campaigning Against Hospitals Dropping DAFNE sadly its not about attendance its about finance. The centres have to pay the DAFNE Programme fees for being allowed to run the course. Many centres have decided to invent their own courses that they don't have to pay for. In Kent its called KATIE ( Kent Adult Type 1 Education, I think ) and is similar to DAFNE. It has a waiting list of about 18 months. Quite a number of centres have gone solo over the last few years. A national programme would be better but in an organisation like the NHS bureaucracy trumps everything else, so Centres fall away without any real change in approach. But hey enough of my bitter twisted views

Nov 10, 2016 marke 657 posts	Topic: General Discussion / Printing the Sick-day Rules yes it has but.... they wouldn't let us have a copy to put on the site. After 2 years of complaining to everyone who would listen we finally got the 2014 copies of the 5 day course, 5x1 day course and pump course. All I have to do now is convert them into a format compatible with the site. It would be easier if they tracked changes between versions but they don't. I hope to have the 5 day course on the site by xmas and the others as soon as I can get them done.....