Event In Review: Australasian Diabetes Congress 2022
The Insulet Breakfast Symposium kicked off the congress on Monday the 8th at the Brisbane Convention and Exhibition Centre. It was an exciting start to an all face-to-face event, with many people keen to get together, network and catch up. Over 300 Registrations to the Insulet Breakfast Symposium saw a packed room.
Dr Bill Polonsky, President, Behavioral Diabetes Institute in San Diego recognised for his work in diabetes distress and quality of life presented on 'Seeking the Best of Both Worlds – Improving Glycaemic Outcomes and Quality of Life'.
He described diabetes distress and highlighted this can lead to disengagement from self-management. He reviewed the role of pump therapy with diabetes distress and gave real world examples of psychological benefit of technology in diabetes.
Whilst technology is available to improve glycaemic outcomes, many choose not to commence on pump therapy due to the hassle of wearing a device and various other important barriers
The ‘Conundrum’ as it was phrased by Dr. Polonsky, resonated with the audience, described as the challenging decision for health care professionals in finding the balance of responsibility in helping patients to achieve glycaemic outcomes but also meeting their mental, emotional and lifestyle needs.
Dr Polonsky’s published studies with Omnipod® have shown that improvement in quality of life and glycaemic outcomes are possible.
Prof David O’Neal presented the interim results of the OPAL study presently being conducted at 4 sites in Melbourne. This is a randomised controlled study of 64 participants comparing Omnipod DASH® Insulin Management System with usual care over 6 months. As this is a satisfaction study, Prof O’Neal shared some wonderful quotes from the participant surveys.
We look forward to the final outcomes of this important study. You can view the e poster with interim results here
Bec Johnson, previous founder and CEO of the Type 1 Family Centre in Perth and also a person living with Type 1 diabetes made her journey from Perth to share her experience with Omnipod DASH®. Bec made the decision to commence Pod Therapy after many years of MDI, choosing not to go onto tubed pumps because they "were not for her". Bec detailed the benefits that Omnipod DASH® has provided which fits with her active lifestyle.
She also made a powerful call to action to all the HCPs in the room asking to advocate for this important choice in technology.
We thank all of the wonderful speakers for their time and expertise.
Insulin For Life, an important charity that provides much needed insulin to people in developing countries thanked Insulet for their charitable donation. The Insulet Australia team committed to donate $20 to Insulin For Life, for every demo Pod worn to the Omnipod® booth at ADC. The Insulet Australia team raised $2000 for this important charity.
The Omnipod® booth was very busy across the congress, celebrating 1 year anniversary with Omnipod Cupcakes. Toby the Turtle, Insulet’s mascot made a guest appearance and the Insulet team were busy providing demos of the product and discussing patients that could benefit from Omnipod DASH® System.