[Diabetes-Talk] Advocacy update.

[Veronica Elsea]

Hi everyone!
Here's information for Dylan or the appropriate person. Good grief! This is
for the second item on the list. This took me about 20 seconds on Google.
There is a Medical Device Manufacturers' Association as I said. Their name
is just that: Medical Device Manufacturers Association.
Their web site is: www.medicaldevices.org
Their job is to be the mouth and ears for all of these manufacturers,
connect with Congress, etc. Hello? 
But I would hope that someone would talk with those of us who use these
devices to ensure the kind of approach that will both get their attention
and lead to a positive outcome. 
In looking around my old documents, I found many of the notes I wrote back
in 1991 when I initially couldn't get anyone to let me try to use a pump and
then regarding the effort it took me to convince the pump companies to
actually sell a pump to a blind person who did not live with a sighted
person. We need to make sure that companies, or should I say, company,
doesn't just strengthen its legal statement that one should not use their
pumps if one can't hear the alarms or see the screen and think they're rid
of us.
I already have quite a long list of ways in which improvements we need would
help everyone else who uses their pumps in the hope that we can reach them
somehow. Trouble is, they will only understand this kind of thinking or a
law suit and law suits can take decades. We need to save them money somehow
or impact everyone. 
Just my thoughts for this afternoon.
Veronica


"Guide Dogs, First Hand", Veronica Elsea's classic album is now available on
iTunes, along with other music from her and from the Guide Dog Glee Club. 
To learn more, visit:
http://www.laurelcreekmusic.com
                Veronica Elsea, Owner
Laurel Creek Music Designs
Santa Cruz, California
Phone: 831-429-6407