Horan Brendan: General DebateText is incorporated into the Bound VolumeHoran Brendan: General Debate[Sitting date: 12 June 2013. Volume:691;Page:11057. Text is incorporated into the Bound Volume.]BRENDAN HORAN (Independent):I would like to address the concerns of diabetics who have had funding removed for their tried and tested blood-sugar meters which have been found to be reliable at all times. Now the Minister of Health funds only the CareSens meters and many diabetics are finding serious problems with these meters. This is an issue of patient safety. It is no good for the Hon Tony Ryall to say that the vast majority of diabetics are accepting CareSens meters. Blood-sugar meters must be accurate. Blood-sugar meters must be reliable.The latest figures state that there could be 305000 New Zealanders with diabetes currently and about 30000 to 40000 of those would have type 1 diabetes. This is an incredible disease which affects so many people. Of those 305000 who are diabetics many are children and many have families so it affects not only the person but also the family members.There have been many concerns about the CareSens machines and I would like to address just some of those concerns. One of the very worrying issues is that the Minister says that there may be a 20 percent variation in readings between meters. Well that is simply too wide. For a child with type 1 diabetes 20 percent could be the difference between a normal reading and hyperglycaemic event. The CareSens meters also do not have a back light. That might sound trivial to members who have iPads and iPhones and the like but for a diabetic having a blood-sugar crash at night they may not even make it to switch on the light. Time is precious. There are concerns that the testing stripssupplied with the CareSens meters will fail or give erroneous readings if the package has been opened for more than 6 months but there is no warning at all on the package.Here is a doozy: the operating temperature needs to be over 10 degrees Celsius. How ridiculous is that? Can you imagine subbies contractors on building sites or actually anybody in the South Island during our winter being able to read their meter or get an accurate level when it does not work accurately under 10 degrees Celsius? I have had many many people emailing me and facebooking me with problems that they have had at low temperatures and it is heartbreaking to read.The testing strips supplied with CareSens meters are quite small. They are difficult for the elderly and also for children to manage. Many elderly people have diabetic or arthritic fingers and they just cannot get the strips into the meters. There is another problem where these meters cannot be placed flat when taking a reading. I was at the Christchurch Diabetes Centre just on Monday. I went through the testing with a diabetic and to think that these meters could not be placed flat in case they flooded through the blood. What happens is that you are supposed to hold the meter insert the strip. Imagine I am an elderly person or somebody with shaky hands and here I am trying to fit this very small strip the correct way into a meter and then I have got to prick myself and then I have got to lift it up and get the strip on to the finger and it is like this. I mean—Hon Craig Foss: We already know the answer to that one.BRENDAN HORAN: —it is absolutely ridiculous is it not? Well that member may interject and may think it is funny but it is not funny for the diabetics and it is not funny for the families of diabetics and it is not acceptable for that member to make a mockery when children in New Zealand are suffering like this. Wake up over that side. I would ask the Minister to wake up and fix the problem. It is quite simple. Give diabetics in New Zealand machinery that works that is accurate and that is reliable.Diabetes is very closely linked to depression. When people have diabetic attacks when their blood-sugar levels are up and down their feelings are affected. Their mannerisms and their complete state of mind are affected. There is a connection between diabetes and suicide and I do not find that a laughing matter at all. Also I am concerned at the advice the Minister received today from Medsafe regarding the number of user medical device incident reports received. On Monday when I visited the diabetes centre in Christchurch over 40 had been submitted.