Increased risk for diabetics
Diabetics are desperate for technology to avoid ending up in hospital, amid growing evidence that those with diabetes are more vulnerable to the coronavirus.
But the technology is not funded here, leaving some people with diabetes fearful they will lose control of managing their blood sugar levels and end up dying as a result of the virus.
This group of diseases results in too much sugar in the blood, because the body doesn’t produce enough insulin.
Earlier this week, the United States’ Centres for Disease Control and Prevention released research that found that, of 178 Covid-19 patients admitted to hospital, nearly a third had diabetes.
Poor diabetes control can impair immune response, and hinder efforts to fight the virus.
Overseas evidence has also showed increased risk of serious complications from Covid-19 for people with diabetes, including respiratory failure and death.
Upper Hutt’s Ruby McGill, who lives with type 1 diabetes, wears a continuous glucose monitoring (CGM) system to monitor her blood sugar levels around the clock. This means she is alerted if there is any sudden change she needs to act on.
Her parents pay for it, to help her out – she is a working mother of two – because CGM systems are not funded by the Government.
Last year, Diabetes NZ took a petition with almost 28,000 signatures to Parliament, calling for CGM systems to be funded. The petition is before the health select committee.
McGill said the could be life-saving.
Diabetes NZ also had concerns about Pharmac’s insulin supply, and reports of employers requiring diabetic workers to continue working despite the safety risk.
Malcolm Mulholland, of Patient Voice Aotearoa, said the need for medical device funding was ‘‘desperate’’ for many patients,heightened by Covid-19.
About a quarter of a million Kiwis have diabetes; including about 228,000 with type-2, and about 25,000 with type-1. technology