Doctor Doctor Give Me The News!

It's the 4th Annual Diabetic Blog Week - today is Numero Uno - and the topic is ... Share and Don't Share:  Often our health care team only sees us for about 15 minutes several times a year, and they might not have a sense of what our lives are really like. Today, let’s pretend our medical team is reading our blogs. What do you wish they could see about your and/or your loved one's daily life with diabetes? On the other hand, what do you hope they don't see?  (Thanks to Melissa Lee of Sweetly Voiced for this topic suggestion.)

I've got the Robert Palmer tune going thru’ my head as I start to compose this – which is the title of my blog – what can I say – I am a sap for songs from the 70’s. 

It’s funny, my endo knows that I write about diabetes and often I will tell him about the latest and greatest things that have come across my desktop that sometimes he doesn't even know about (I mean he doesn't just deal with diabetes – but other endocrine disorders).  He’s got a lot that he has to retain in his brain – in order to be up on the latest and greatest – so if I – the advocate diabetic can launch myself into the patients chair and tell him some new stuff – that’s as good thing – right?

Sometimes though, and I’m lucky here, I have more than 15 minutes to spend with him which as the topic discussion states above is the norm for most medical visits (in / out – Thank you Mam).  We actually at times get into a pretty good discussion – to the point that I sometimes forget to really talk about what is bothering me – I am blabbing on about this and that – and it’s like – walking out to the parking lot realising – “Oops – I forgot to mention this!”.  Oh well, there’s the next 6 month visit, I’ll “remember” then <lol>.

I know for myself, here in the province of Quebec and probably elsewhere that finding a good endo is like looking for a needle in a haystack.  Or at least that is how I am finding it since I started to look around for an endo that understood what insulin pumping was all about.  Since I’m self-taught on the device (which I’m still taking a holiday from since January 2013 due to my dislike of how Animas Corporation has treated it’s 2020 owners) – what I’ve always dreamed of is having an endo that knows about insulin pumping.   I had found a highly qualified endo who is involved in diabetes research along with pump technology a few years ago – but when they saw my A1C - they said it was was too low for any of their patients (mine was 6%)! Showing them my BG readings from my meter to show them I don’t have many hypos to account for that number – did dick all for me – they wouldn't take me on as a patient.

The current one I have was against my going on a pump, so much so, I went behind his back to obtain one, and then in the end, he had to sign the papers to allow me to purchase one.  I just wish that he would take the time to not just go over how wonderful my A1C’s are – since I don’t feel this gives the complete picture of your overall success with your control.   The A1C number could be low due to a lot of hypos – which isn’t a good thing.  If my endo would only take the time to look over my blood sugar (BG) readings – that would help him determine where adjustments need to be done (less basal, figure out the correction dose number for correcting high blood sugar, etc.).  I did hand him a print out just once – from my pump / blood meter – but he just glanced at them and said he didn't need to see them, because my A1C is good – scream!!! 

I guess I've never really actually whined about this to him, because both he and I know, I can do this myself, I’m my own advocate of my diabetes health but then I worry about his other patients that aren't like that – who rely totally on him to give them the numbers.    It’s times like this that if I had a higher education, and he had the money, he could hire me as his assistant to help with newly diagnosed diabetics to get them on the right track – to being their own health care advocates – and not letting diabetes rule their life but the other way around.

Hear me roar! Mew!

To read other blogs on today's topic -  click for the Share and Don’t Share - Monday 5/13 Link List.