The five words that influenced my pharmacy career

I was accepted into the College of Pharmacy at Dalhousie University and I was so excited. It would be my first time away from home for an extended period. Graduation from high school was exciting and I spent the summer working and enjoying my friends. However, on July 26th, 1973 my life was about to change. The doctor told me these 5 words: “You have type 1 diabetes.” I didn’t know a lot about diabetes, so I had no reason to be afraid, nor was I aware of how it would impact my life and influence my career choices. I was diagnosed before the age of diabetes technology. There were no blood glucose meters, no insulin pumps, no insulin pens and dietary choices were strict. There were only a few insulins available as compared to the choices now on the market. I graduated with my Pharmacy Degree in 1977 and began my career in a small community pharmacy, the same place where I had done my internship. It wasn’t a busy pharmacy so I had great opportunities to counsel people and interact with clients. I became active in the Diabetes Canada (then known as The Canadian Diabetes Association [CDA]) local branch and worked with the diabetes center in the community hospital—the same hospital where I had been a patient with my diagnosis. This was a first for a pharmacist working in the community setting to become involved with the hospital team. I started presenting educational sessions at meetings and conferences covering a 60-mile radius. People were very receptive and appreciative of the one-on-one counselling and learning how to help themselves manage their disease. In 1980 I moved to Moncton, NB, and worked in a very busy pharmacy. This however, did not deter me from patient counselling and becoming involved once again with Diabetes Canada. It was at this pharmacy I initiated, with my boss’s approval, the sale of blood glucose meters. We were the first pharmacy in the province to embark on this undertaking. I would book appointments and my boss would allow me to use his office for the teaching sessions. My first patient fainted twice when he saw his own blood from doing the finger prick. Despite this, he wanted to continue with the explanation. This patient still contacts me today when new devices come on the market to ask my opinion. The CBC radio station interviewed me and requests for these devices became very popular. It was unfortunate that most private or provincial insurance plans did not cover the cost of these meters ($365.00) or any of the supplies needed, such as the strips (approximately $100.00 /100 strips). Over time, I acted as a consultant to several insurance providers, helping them to write eligibility criteria for coverage of this new category of diabetes tools. In 1987 I shifted the focus of my career to the hospital setting. I became the first pharmacist to be involved in the Diabetic Clinic, a position which remains today. I received my certification as a Diabetes Educator (CDE), the first pharmacist in the province to have this title. I continued my work and involvement in Diabetes by providing seminars across Canada and at local events. These seminars could be stressful so I often developed high blood glucose levels yet I was determined to continue. I saw the need for education not only on diabetes but all medications. Because of my qualifications as a CDE and a pharmacist, I was often consulted by the pediatric unit when a child was diagnosed with type 1 diabetes. I would be asked to talk to the parents and the patient not as a pharmacist, but especially about my experience living with diabetes. (However, my knowledge as a pharmacist could not be ignored and always crept into the conversation.) Some days it was hard to find the time to do diabetes teaching since I was also working in our cancer clinic. Patients in our cancer clinic also needed education and eventually I had to decide to do one full time and I chose Cancer Care. By this time, the pharmacy had another Certified Diabetes Educator who was working at the Diabetic Clinic. Diabetes is very common in the cancer population and often diagnosed pre or during cancer therapies. Several in-services were provided to nursing staff about managing diabetes in this group of patients. Cancer and the therapies can affect a patient’s appetite, cause nausea/vomiting, certain medications such as steroids can elevate blood glucose and the lack of energy and exercise can all contribute to changes in blood glucose levels. All of these miscellaneous items needed to be considered when deciding how to manage the diabetes along with the cancer. I canvassed for CDA for several years during the month of November and was on the editorial board of what is now referred to as the Diabetes Communicator. I have received awards for my dedication to this disease and for my patient education and counselling skills. However, as much as these are important to me, my most important reward was to see an improvement in a patient’s diabetes management and their overall well-being. In 2020 I started writing a blog for patients with diabetes. Even though I am now retired, I continue trying to help the diabetes population manage their disease. My blog site is here. Every three minutes a Canadian is diagnosed with diabetes. It is not a friendly disease and can have serious consequences when not controlled. Thank you to all the professionals and public organizations that help us manage our disease. Pharmacists who want to be involved in diabetes care or any chronic disease management, I am sure your help would be welcomed. Karen’s is the sixth entry in our Write to Win reader writing contest! Thank you to everyone who has submitted stories, blogs and poems. Each week we'll publish one reader’s entry and in March, the editorial staff of CanadianHealthcareNetwork.ca will choose three winners for a grand prize of a $500 gift card and two honourable mentions for $250.

The five words that influenced my pharmacy career

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