17 April, 2020
A 10-year-old girl living with Type one diabetes (T1D), from Burnie, Tasmania was the first person in Australia to access the MiniMed insulin pump via a remote pump start on 25 March 2020 under the new Telehealth COVID-19 guidance.
Working with the pump coordinator and Diabetes Educator servicing North West Regional Hospital as well as the Tasmanian Health Services newly appointed Telehealth IT team, our team member, Katy, initiated this new telehealth option to adhere to social distancing guidance, while also ensuring patient’s access to this life-changing therapy was not delayed due to the COVID-19 pandemic.
The education component and information delivery was ‘virtually’ the same as if the activity was happening normally, with Katy asking additional questions and taking her time to ensure that the patient and her family understood all the essential training steps.