En Route to RED and ADS-ADEA 2017

It’s a busy week in diabetes.

Today I’m at the Roche Educator’s Day (RED) in Perth, which is a day specifically for Diabetes Educators held annually on the day prior to the ADS-ADEA Annual Scientific Meeting.


The reason I’m here? I’ll be speaking in the final session of the day, which is the People With Diabetes Panel Discussion, kicking off at 4pm WST. I am told that this is the first year that there will be a session driven by consumers, as a result of feedback from attendees at previous events. What better way for Diabetes Educators to learn than gaining insights from actual people who have diabetes?

I’m live tweeting using #RED2017 on Twitter, so be sure to follow along for live updates from myself and other attendees.

Then from tomorrow through until Friday, the Australian Diabetes Society (ADS) and the Australian Diabetes Educator’s Association (ADEA) are holding their joint annual scientific meeting right here in Perth. The conference brings together diabetes healthcare professionals, researchers and people working in the diabetes industry.

This is the part where I give everyone gaping looks and say “you travelled all the way from Melbourne?!”

Obviously I had been eyeing the ADS-ADEA event this year, given that it was being hosted right here in my hometown of Perth. However given the cost of registration, there was no way that I could justify going.

So I was absolutely honoured when Diabetes Australia asked if I would be interested in being part of their media team at this year’s event, alongside these three amazing diabetes advocates:

Melinda of Twice Diabetes / @MelindaSeedT1D

Ashley of Bittersweet Diagnosis / @Health4Diabetes

Renza of Diabetogenic / @RenzaS

The idea is that we will be providing a voice from the community, for the community, and hopefully lead the push for greater consumer involvement at future diabetes conferences. 

We will be live tweeting out of the sessions using the hashtags #DAPeoplesVoice and #ADSADEA2017 on Twitter, and packaging updates for Diabetes Australia’s Facebook page. Of course, in the weeks to come, there’s a good chance we’ll have lots to say through our blogs as well…

I really do thank Diabetes Australia for making this initiative happen, and hopefully this is only a bridge towards larger consumer involvement at future diabetes events.

Disclosures: Roche Diabetes Care Australia have covered my registration and travel costs to attend Roche Educator’s Day. I am also being paid an Honoraria for my giving up my time to speak in the People With Diabetes panel discussion. There is no expectation that my participation will bind me to a particular view of Roche, nor is there any expectation that I will blog or Tweet about the event.

Diabetes Australia have provided me with a media pass to attend the ADS-ADEA conference from Wednesday through until Friday, with the view that I am interested in attending and delivering my own honest insights to the wider diabetes community. Indeed I am!

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