Diabetes; Ask the Experts.

Thinking, thinking & thinking.

My experience of Diabetes Public Information meetings is that of me sitting in a large hotel function room and being subjected to all sorts of presentations from medical professionals. The presentations range from poorly prepared and poorly delivered to entertaining, informative and easy listening. So it’s like a lucky dip as to whether the meeting is worthwhile.

So when I heard about the “Diabetes; Ask the Experts” event I registered the very next day. We rarely, in the Irish Diabetes Community come across an event where some of the speakers’ reputation precedes them. I’m specifically talking about Dr. Steve Edelman, who is a person with Type 1 Diabetes, an endocrinologist, author of “50 Secrets of the Longest Living People with Diabetes” and a diabetes activist.


I then logged onto his website www.tcoyd.org to see what the “Take Control of Your Diabetes" movement was all about. They do day-long conferences for people with diabetes that includes presentations which we are used to. However, there are, what’s referred to as “Roving Diabetes Educators” wearing ribbons that read “Ask ME! I’m an Educator”, who will talk to anyone who taps them on the shoulder.


You might be saying that it sounds just like what we already have! But the difference is there is more interaction between the medical professionals and the people plus, some of the medical professionals have diabetes themselves so they talk the same language as us.


TCOYD are also doing a TV series called “Extreme Diabetes Makeover” which is airing on the website at the moment.


I started to think about the possibility of having something like that here. Would people turn up and pay money for this? Would the people of Ireland be willing to invest in a movement like this?