Nursing Council criticizes the withdrawal of reactive strips

The Nursing Council of the Valencian Community (Cecova) today expressed its support for the Valencian Association of Educators in Diabetes (AVED) and has criticized "the generalized and drastic withdrawal" of reactive strips to diabetic patients.

In a statement, the president of Cecova, José Antonio Ávila, has assured "understanding and sharing" that the health administration "must ensure for adjusting the expense and establishing control over the abuse of reactive strips."

However, he explained that he does not share "the decision to make a drastic cut and that, from night to day, he leaves many homeless diabetics with the anguish that this entails."

In his opinion, it is a measure "taken without having previously weighted it", since "there is scientific evidence of the usefulness of the strips and their long -term benefit."

In this sense, the president has considered "necessary" a rationalization of the use of reactive strips, but "accompanied by an investment in therapeutic education programs in diabetes and in the training of nursing professionals."

Thus, Cecova has claimed the Ministry of Health to "clarify the recommendations and advice" included in the Manual for the use of the strips edited by the General Directorate of Pharmacy and Health Products.

Similarly, he has warned that patients "are going to go directly to the hospital or the health center when they have symptoms of hypoglycemia, saturating the system, when until now the nurses had achieved through education programs that they were responsible for their ailmentchronicle".

In this regard, they have clarified that, for the attention of people with type 2 diabetes, "the glycemia automonatorization must be considered continuously for people who take oral drugs, but not insulin, with the aim of providing information on hypoglycemia".

Cecova has also defended that, according to "demonstrate recent studies," blood glucose automation in people with type 2 diabetes not treated with insulin, in the context of an educational program in diabetes "is effective."

Therefore, "the benefit of reactive strips is economically huge, although it is true that savings occurs in the long term thanks to the appearance of a lower number of complications in diabetic patients," they have asserted.