Today, Diabetes Ireland welcomed the decision of the NHS to make the Freestyle Libre available to people living with diabetes in the UK. Diabetes Ireland is extremely keen to see Freestyle Libre made available to people with diabetes under the Long Term Illness scheme here in Ireland as soon as possible.
Abbott Ireland submitted an application to the HSE in February 2017 seeking re-imbursement to make the technology freely available in Ireland as soon as possible. “We still await a decision on that application but we sincerely hope that the HSE accepts the NHS wisdom and makes the Freestyle Libre available here in the very near future” said Dr. Anna Clarke, Head of Health Promotion & Research, Diabetes Ireland.
Abbott’s revolutionary FreeStyle Libre flash glucose monitoring system is designed to change how people with diabetes measure their glucose levels and ultimately help them achieve better health outcomes. The system automatically reads glucose levels through a sensor, approximately the size of a £2 coin, that is worn on the back of the upper arm for up to 14 days, eliminating the need for routine finger pricks and user calibration. The ease, convenience and discretion afforded by the product have led to strong support across patients, healthcare professionals and key opinion leaders.
Two clinical trials and real-world evidence from more than 50,000 users show that people who use the FreeStyle Libre system scan their glucose levels an average of at least 15 times per day. In real-world use, higher rates of scanning to self-monitor glucose were found to be strongly associated with improved glucose measures, including decreased time in hypoglycaemia (low glucose levels) and hyperglycaemia (high glucose levels) and reduced estimated HbA1c.
With the data from the FreeStyle Libre system, people can have a better understanding of their glucose levels through the Ambulatory Glucose Profile (AGP), a chart generated by the system that provides a visual snapshot of glucose levels, trends and patterns over time. It also provides doctors with deeper insights to help make more informed treatment decisions.
The Freestyle Libre is currently only available for self-purchase in Ireland – see https://freestylediabetes.ie/our-products/freestyle-libre.