Another Thriveabetes is in the bag. :-( I don’t know where to start to summarise the day. Finding the right words to describe the fun, emotion and how much I enjoyed Thriveabetes 2018 on Saturday 24th February has been tough. So, I gave up and decided to use your words instead and a jumble of moments I wanted to share with you.
It is just days to Thriveabetes 2018. I really, REALLY can’t wait! It’s been way too long since we had a D-party. We have a lot of newcomers to the conference this year who may not know what to expect. This is a review I wrote after Thriveabetes 2016 with some of our photos, it may help to give you a sense of what you are about to experience.
Well, we also have a lot of people coming back to Thriveabetes, that, should really say it all!!! Hello Familiar Faces:-D
This event has been planned, from beginning to end, by volunteers who feel passionate about bringing people with type 1 diabetes together. We have been working hard behind the scenes for the last 12 months to make this happen. Please click on this link and find out about who we ALL are. Seriously, it's not just me people!
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This is our third national event and second family conference. In Maynooth in 2015, we had 190 people.
In Naas 2016, we had 248 individuals attending;
This demonstrates a clear demand for this type of event.
The primary objective of Thriveabetes is to provide emotional support to all the adults, to both parents of children with type 1 diabetes and adults with type 1.
We feel most of the medical information about living with type 1 diabetes is available from your diabetes clinic, from attending diabetes information conferences and from the internet.
We felt that no one was talking about what it is like to live with type 1 diabetes and how it affects every element of our lives. The psychological effects of living with type 1 diabetes.
Parents of children with type 1 diabetes, how often does anyone ask YOU how you are coping with your child’s diabetes?
Adults with type 1 diabetes, are you ever asked how you’re coping with this life long chronic illness? I bet not often.
And most of all we want you all to find:
Information, Motivation and Inspiration to Thrive with Type 1 Diabetes.
Last chance to snap up the last few registration places.
Registration closes at 12pm/Noon on Friday 23rd February.
*** Advanced registration is required. Register here.
Register soon
What's next in the Freestyle Libre/Equality for all people with type 1 diabetes Campaign? Since I posted my initial reaction to the HSE's announcement to reimbursed only children and young adults on multiple daily injections (MDI) for the Freestyle Libre, I have joined forces with fellow advocates, Davina Lyon from Diabetes T One and Elizabeth Murphy, Waterford Diabetes Support.
Firstly, I would very much like to thank all the members of the diabetes community who have reached out to us, emailed their local TD's and have been sharing those replies with us. We have gathered so much information from that process.
Davina created a Change.org petition that has gathered an unprecedented 13,000 + signatures. She is working with her local TD, Frank O’Rourke and with Diabetes Ireland to get this petition into the hands of Minister Harris.
Elizabeth has also been working with her local TD, Mary Butler on the same objective. She has been emailing Deputy Butler with follow up parliamentary questions to get more information from the HSE.
Both Davina and Elizabeth requested that their local TDs, Frank O’Rourke and Mary Butler, ask parliamentary questions to clarify some of the information in the HSE's statement. Both Deputies decided to do this jointly and on Tuesday 6th February, publicly, asked the Minister for Health these crucial questions:
The minister did not attend this session in the Dail on this occasion. He deputized Deputy Jim Daly, Minister for State with Special Responsibility for Mental Health and Older People to respond. Deputy Daly acknowledged that he did not have any answers or new information for us. But that we did indeed deserve and need answers to the questions asked.
The next step is taking matters into our own hands. Davina emailed the Minister for Health, Spokespeople for health from both Fianna Fáil and Sinn Fein, Diabetes Ireland and the Director General of the HSE, Tony O'Brien requesting this meeting again.
If the Minister doesn’t respond we plan to deliver it anyway. We hope that Frank & Mary and other members of the Dáil will accept it on the Minister's behalf. Do you think if we give you about two weeks notice you would join us?
I also have follow up questions on why the HTAG document makes it’s recommendation that this device be approved for children without any clinical evidence to support it to ask the Minister and the HSE on my personal blog: BloodSugarTrampoline.com publishing on Wednesday 14th February.
Here is the video of Deputies Mary Butler and Frank O'Rourke asking those questions;
