What to do when you live with diabetes and are sick

Did you know, there’s a new online emergency health service for Victorians?

The Victorian Virtual Emergency Department – Diabetes (VVED Diabetes) is a free, state-wide service that has diabetes experts available 24/7 – including Endocrinologists (doctors) and Diabetes Nurse Practitioners.

All you need to access the service is a device with a camera such as a smart phone, laptop, iPad or tablet. Everything is done by telehealth, and it’s free for Victorians!

Everyone gets sick from time to time. Whether it’s the flu, gastro, food poisoning or COVID, being sick can affect the way that you need to manage your diabetes during this time. This may include knowing what to do when glucose levels are outside of your target range, knowing which medications may need to be stopped while you are sick or how to manage blood ketones.

Sometimes it may be the treatment you are taking for an illness that can affect your glucose levels, such as steroids or antibiotics for an infection.

Getting sick is not something we plan, but it’s something people living with diabetes should plan for. It is very important to have a current sick day management plan before you need it. This is important for all types of diabetes.

Check that your Sick Day Management Plan includes all the medications you are currently taking for your diabetes. If it’s not up to date, talk to your diabetes team about getting a new one.

When you have diabetes and are sick it’s not always an emergency. You may not need an ambulance or to go to the hospital Emergency Department (ED) in person. You are likely to need extra support and specific diabetes care and advice though. This expert help can mean you can stay safely at home plus know when and how to get more help if things should get worse.

This new service is available to Victorian people living with diabetes, their family or support persons from home. It’s also a resource service for health professionals such as a GP or an Ambulance Victoria crew.

What can you do?

Make sure you and your family or support people know where your sick day management plan is and how to use it. When you are sick, you often need the help of others.

If you don’t have a sick day management plan – ask your diabetes health care team for one.

You might like to add the VVED Diabetes contact information to your sick day plan or ask your diabetes educator to do this: https://www.vved.org.au/

For more information contact the Diabetes Victoria Helpline and ask to speak with one of our diabetes nurse educators: 1300 437 386