April 12, 2007
Other
Question from Ethiopia:
My niece lives in a very rural and poor town in Ethiopia and has little access to medical equipment and advice, so I am trying to find more information for her. She was diagnosed with diabetes about two years ago. Her mother passed away two years ago and her father is very aged. I am nervous for her because she has sores at her injection sites. I think this may be a hygiene problem, but I do not know. She is poor and has limited access to supplies. Do you have any suggestions as to how I can instruct her to stay as healthy as possible, especially as there are limited supplies for her in her small town?
Answer:
Obviously, if she cannot used new needles each time, she needs to be sure the needles are clean, boiled, if possible and the skin at the site of the injection is cleansed with soap and water. Encourage her to stay active, take her insulin and test as much as she can.
LD
