Diabetics face a treatment access lottery

Sir, – Following on from your excellent articles on new technology for diabetic glucose monitoring (“Scientists develop patch to monitor blood glucose levels”, The Courier, April 10) and on discrimination facing diabetics at work (The Courier, April 10), I would like to contribute a couple of points based on 44 years of living with type 1 diabetes.

Discrimination is not new for diabetics and even our treatment is dependent on where we happen to live, especially when it comes to accessing new technologies.

There is already a blood-free glucose monitoring system available, but only if you are lucky enough to live in certain areas and Tayside is, unsurprisingly, not one of them. Unfortunately, the problems with our health service go way beyond just Tayside, and way beyond just financial issues.

Our regional NHS boards are virtually unaccountable and their decisions do not appear to include the community or patients.

I strongly believe there needs to be a national reappraisal of the powers, accountability and community involvement into these bodies or the postcode service discrimination fiasco will continue.

Each board should be required to publish their strategies on increasing community engagement and openness in partnership with local communities.

In opposition, all politicians rail against postcode lotteries in health, but in power they do little.

We do not need statecontrolled health discrimination on top of everything else. Alan Urquhart. 8 Clattowoods Place, Dundee.

University of Bath PhD researcher Luca Lipani, who helped create a non-invasive patch to measure glucose levels through the skin. A correspondent argues type 1 diabetics suffer postcode discrimination when it comes to accessing new technologies.