By Simon Shepherd
Parents whose children have type one diabetes are campaigning for the Government to fund insulin pumps.
The pumps mean children no longer need injections and have a better lifestyle. But they’re expensive, which forces families to fundraise full-time.
Going for a hot lap at Hampton Downs with Greg Murphy is a rare treat for kids with diabetes.
The V8 Supercar driver himself has two boys with type one, so he knows just how important it is for families to take a break from dealing with the disease.
“People can go into comas and pass out, and it can be life threatening at certain stages, so those are people are in desperate need of having better control of their levels,” he says.
Like Louis, his blood sugar levels were being controlled by insulin injections but they have started to fluctuate - today he needs an extra jab.
“It’s upsetting and it is frustrating, ‘cause there is no rhyme nor reason for it so we have to go with it and give him injections when he needs them and give him sugar when he is having a low,” says his mum Tara.
But friend Sebastian has an insulin pump which helps control levels.
It's expensive and the Government doesn't fund it, but it means a better lifestyle now and less complications later in life.
“The big impact has been the food, we don’t have to now eat at certain times of the day, he doesn’t have to have six meals a day, he can eat whenever he likes he can eat as little or as often, as much as he likes and that’s the biggie,” says Sebastian’s mum Linda Alchin.
To pressure the Government to fund the pumps, the Alchin family has made a mini documentary about living with type 1 diabetes.
The family reveals how they constantly have to fundraise.
Pumps cost up to $8000 and last six years, then there’s the extra $300 a month for tubes and other disposables.
“We are one of the few countries in the world that don’t fund the pumps, our insurance companies don’t fund them either and the Government funding, there’s no funding for the consumables,” says Mrs Alchin.
Some district health boards do fund the pumps, but drug funding agency Pharmac is reviewing whether pumps should be available nationwide.
That process is far from complete and a decision isn't expected until the end of the year.
For now, Louis will still need several injections every day, and Sebastian's family will have to keep fundraising.
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