A1C test must be done every 3 months for a diabetic person.  This test measures the control that you’ve had over a given period.  This is usually performed at your Endocrinologist’s office.  Hence, most diabetic see their Endocrinologist every 3 months.

Is your Endocrinologist’s office conveniently located?  How long does it take you to get there?  How many hours, on the day of the appointment, do you miss from school/work?

We live in a very small town in Upstate New York.  We have a great hospital, Alice Hyde Medical Center.  I gave birth there to our second son and the care was fabulous.  Unfortunately, they do not have a Pediatric Endocrinologist.  In order to get Tristan the care that he needs, we need to drive 2h30 to Fletcher Allen Hospital in Burlington Vermont.

For us, an appointment is an all day event.  With Tristan recently diagnosed with Childhood Absence Epilepsy, our day at the hospital just got longer.  We are in the car for just about 5 hours in 1 day with a 5 year old and a 2 year old.  Needless to say it’s a very stressful day for us.  We have looked at the possibility of leaving Connor, our 2 year old, at home but the closest people that could watch him are 1h15 minutes away.  And honestly, we really don’t want to impose on them.

During the winter months, we don’t usually go every 3 months.  Usually we will schedule the appointment between 3 and 6 months depending on what month the appointment would fall into.  When the next appointment is closer to the 6 month mark, we will usually receive paperwork to go to our local hospital for the A1C test.  The problem is that since this hospital doesn’t have an Endocrinologist team, they also don’t have the required equipment.  A1C test is usually done by a finger prick, at our local hospital, it’s done by a blood test.  Thank goodness for EMLA cream!

With our jobs, we have no sick/personal time or vacation.  When we go, both Adam and myself lose a full day’s pay and Tristan loses a full day of school.

We are fortunate that we are able to have a day without pay and still be fine.  But imagine a family who doesn’t have a lot of money.  They may or may not be paid for the day that they are missing work, they must pay for gas, they must pay for parking and of course being at the hospital all day, you have to consider that they need to purchase food.  It turns out to be a very expensive day…. just to make sure that yourself or your child is healthy and receiving the proper medical care.

This is nowhere near an ideal situation.  We were informed that in the past, the diabetes team from Fletcher Allen use to come to Alice Hyde Medical Center to work with the local and the surrounding patients.  From what we understand, something happened, we don’t know what and this service was discontinued.

I’m very lucky, I have a great pediatrician for the boys.  There is a lot of communication between his pediatrician and his Endocrinologist.  When Tristan is sick, 24 hours after seeing his pediatrician I will usually receive a call to see how he’s feeling and how the illness has been affecting his blood sugar.

This is my biggest complaint about the town that I live in (not the only one but the biggest).  There are no services!  To get any type of specialist, you need to drive usually 2 hours in either direction.  It would be easier and faster for me to bring Tristan to Canada for his appointment but of course, insurance company won’t allow that.

I know that you can’t have everything in life but I do wish that his diabetes team was closer!