Derbyshire Community Health Services NHS Foundation Trust
“Our Voice” December 2015
High Peak resident Chris is enjoying the peace of mind of having his own virtual diabetes nurse to keep a daily check on him. Chris, a retired chartered accountant, has been living with diabetes for 16 years and last month became one of the first to join our new FLO telemedicine scheme.
FLO provides the benefit of knowing somebody is keeping a regular expert eye on his blood sugar readings and can head off any problems before they start. It involves taking a finger prick blood test once a day and then texting the reading to FLO’s automated system. FLO then flags up any readings which fall outside Chris’ normal range to the diabetes nurse. And if Chris forgets, he gets a reminder text from FLO.
“It’s a lot easier than keeping a diary and it means my results are reviewed regularly by the diabetes team. It really is a 30 second job for me,” said Chris, who lives in Combs, near Chapel en le Frith.
Once his daily blood test reading has been reviewed he will receive a response. “I usually get a text back to say it’s fine, but if it’s too high or too low I get instructions on what to do next. Before I started on FLO it could be weeks between my readings being reviewed at the GP.”
Chris, a grandfather to seven, ranging in age from 17 years to 18 months, would recommend FLO as beneficial in helping to manage his diabetes. “It means I’m being monitored on a regular basis instead of going to the doctor for a check up on a less frequent basis.”
And because it is so quick and easy, it means he can manage his diabetes around his enjoyment of normal life. Not least of which is being involved with all his grandchildren and running a local quiz. For a man who spent his working life with numbers it seems numbers are still playing a key role in his retirement – at least the few digits he texts to FLO each day.
For more information contact: Joan.PonsLaplana@ardengemcsu.nhs.uk
#Derbyshire Community Health Services #Arden GEM CSU #Greater East Midlands #TotallyUnique
