Diabetes education creates path to transplant
For Chad Clements, a routine medical test before a snowmobiling trip led to an unexpected diabetes diagnosis. “It was lifechanging. I was adventurous – sledding, quadding, outdoors stuff. Now I can’t do any of it.”
Within three years, Clements needed home dialysis seven days a week for ten hours a day. Today, he receives in-hospital dialysis four hours daily, three days a week.
“Chad wasn’t aware of how uncontrolled his diabetes was because his post-dialysis glucose readings looked fine,” explained Laurelle Pachal, a Diabetes Nurse Educator with the Saskatchewan Health Authority (SHA) Kidney Health Program.
Clements’ goal is a kidney transplant but high blood sugar levels jeopardized his eligibility due to the higher risk of poor post-surgical outcomes.
To help, the Regina pre-transplant team collaborated with Pachal. She provided a glucose monitor and insulin. Within three weeks, his blood sugar levels dropped significantly, nearing target range.
“Education and the real-time glucose data completely turned things around for him,” Pachal said. Clements continues to improve, frequently meeting his blood sugar targets and reducing high readings by almost 30 per cent early on.
Lowering his blood sugars reduces the chance of surgical risks which moves Clements closer to securing a spot on the transplant list. “If (Pachal) had been with me right from the start, I probably wouldn’t have spent so many years struggling to get my diabetes under control.”
For conditions like diabetes, regular screenings and risk assessments are key to staying informed and taking proactive steps toward managing your health. Make preventative care a priority - stay connected with your health-care provider through regular visits to monitor your health.
