New Zealand and Type 1 Diabetes

Editor’s Note: Learn about the DKA Awareness Campaign in New Zealand.

About New Zealand & Type 1 diabetes

New Zealand (NZ) is a small country at the bottom of the world, yet, as is the case in other countries, the incidence of type 1 diabetes is increasing, from 10.9 per 100,000 aged 0-14 years in 1990, to 22.5 per 100,000 in the same age group in 2009. (Derraik J, Reed P, Jeffries C, et al. 2012.)

Another study suggests that 1 in 500 school aged children have type 1 in New Zealand. According to Diabetes New Zealand, it is estimated that approximately 10 percent of all diabetes in New Zealand is type 1 diabetes, meaning that there are around 26,000 patients with the disease in the country.

Approximately 5 percent of people with type 1 are admitted to hospital each year, with around 2/3 of these admissions related to their type 1 diabetes (T1D), says South Land Alliance. There is some variation throughout the country, with one study demonstrating that there is a higher admission rate in the southern part of the South Island (Otago, Southland, Canterbury) than the rest of the country. It is not fully understood as to why this is the case.

Type 1 diabetes patients are managed by specialist teams within the Public Health Sector in New Zealand, with key medications funded for all patients by central government, via the Pharmaceutical Management Agency (PHARMAC). Insulin pumps, while also funded in the public environment, are strictly controlled, and up until July 2016 even required a specific committee to review and approve all applications from clinicians for pumps.

The funding of glucose test strips and meters has been very controversial in NZ, with all patients required to switch from various existing brands onto a single, cheaper brand several years ago. This caused much consternation amongst clinicians, T1 patients and their families. Future funding in this sector is currently under review. Continuous glucose monitoring devices are not funded for any patients in New Zealand.

A major challenge for groups supporting patients with T1D (like Beyond Type 1) is to educate the general public about type 1 diabetes and, in particular, to help differentiate it from type 2 diabetes. When fully informed, the public will understand and support the need for all appropriate treatments and devices to be fully funded for patients with T1D.

Patrick Forrester lives in Auckland, New Zealand and has a 20-year-old son with type 1 diabetes. He’s proud to be involved with the fight to improve access to appropriate treatments for his son and other people with type 1 and to help educate New Zealanders about the disease.