Patients with type 1 diabetes will be eligible for life-changing continuous glucose monitors after the health service negotiated and secured funding for this innovative technology.
Continuous glucose monitors (CGMs) are wearable arm gadgets that send information to a mobile app, allowing diabetes patients to keep track of their glucose levels at all times without having to scan or take a finger prick test.
Twin sisters Rochelle and Elise Featherstone, who work for the Partnership's Digital Programme, have both been living with type 1 diabetes since childhood. They were first prescribed their CGMs in 2019 by a specialist diabetes team and describe their experience of the technology as “life-changing; our HbA1c (an important blood test which indicates how well diabetes has been controlled over the last three months) and health have dramatically improved”.
Having a CGM has given Rochelle and Elise more independence, freedom, control and security in their daily lives. An example of this includes how the technology has provided Rochelle and Elise with confidence and reassurance whilst driving and also during sleep: “We feel far less anxiety around our sleep as the device sounds an alarm via our phones when our blood sugar is dropping through the night, reducing the fear of diabetic seizures.”
When asked about what it means for them and other people living with diabetes to have this available on tariff, Rochelle and Elise expressed how the device enables users to “make more informed decisions about their health”; also, as their doctors have access to the information it provides them with “a more accurate insight” which “contributes to greater support and quality of life”.
“The CGM to us has reduced the negative connotations of diabetes being portrayed as a disadvantage, the introduction of such technology allows those living with the condition to lead happy, healthy and independent lives.”