Who are we?

INPUT is a patient led support group for people using insulin pumps to control their diabetes. It is run by pump users and their families and was formed in November 1998.

Mission statement

To raise awareness of insulin pump therapy in the UK diabetes community

To help, support and educate insulin pump users and their families

To have insulin pump therapy fully funded by the National Health Service for anyone who wishes to use it as a treatment for their diabetes.

We consider that pump therapy is merely another alternative for managing diabetes and should be offered as a treatment of informed choice.

What do we do?

We act as an information centre for people seeking facts about insulin pumps, their use and how to obtain and fund them. We are an independent organisation that offers no allegiance to any manufacturer. Our prime objectives are to increase the awareness and understanding of insulin pump therapy. We feel strongly that people should be given the opportunity to choose the best care for their diabetes. In our opinion the insulin pump is the best tool, currently available, to help well-motivated people with diabetes to achieve improved control and quality of life. We stress "well-motivated" since in order to use the pump successfully you must want to manage your own diabetes and be prepared to measure blood glucose levels at least 4 times a day.

Who can get an insulin pump?

In past years funding was not available for insulin pumps. Following the publication of NICE guidance No. 57 on 26th February 2003, funding is now available to those who meet the criteria.For more detailed information on the guidance, select NICE guidance from the menu at the top of the page

Why use insulin pump therapy?

Many people despite their best efforts are unable to achieve the glycaemic control they would like to achieve. Their lives may be blighted by frequent hypoglycaemia and they may often feel unwell. Despite the fact that their control appears clinically normal, it is at the cost of frequent highs and lows. An insulin pump offers the most physiological (most like your own body) method of delivering insulin. Only constant very small amounts of one type of insulin are delivered so there is much less risk of having a hypo.

Modern pumps, thanks to the advance of electronics have more safety features, are reliable and very durable. This, together with new "buffered" quick-acting insulins, means that pump therapy is as safe as multiple injection therapy when recommended procedures are followed.

Insulin pumps are widely used in most European countries and are fully funded in Germany, France, Sweden, Holland, the Czech Republic, Norway, and Israel and are funded by hospital budgets in Italy and Finland. Since the UK now funds a limited amount of pumps, only Spain has yet to find a solution.

Growing clinical evidence supports the use of insulin pumps as the therapy of choice in motivated individuals. An Insulin pump can be an important tool that may be effective in reducing hypoglycaemia, maintaining more normal blood glucose levels and in reducing the complications and costs of diabetes. The flexibility that they provide can improve quality of life.

Our Activities

We support and promote insulin pump therapy in many ways. Our activities include organising and supporting regional Pump Clubs throughout the UK and the Republic of Ireland. These are both social and educational groups who meet periodically to discuss how best to further the awareness of pump therapy in their area. Each area has a Pump Pal who talks to prospective pump patients. The Pump Pal also introduces new pump users to the benefits of pump therapy. This follows on from the initial hospital training they received when starting the pump.

Our Parent Support Network provides help and assistance to the parents of children on the pump. There are many different problems experienced by children with diabetes, whether on the pump or not. The experience of others who have had the same problems with their child often helps other parents.

We organise Information Days (or Roadshows) where we invite members of the diabetes community to come and meet existing pump users and their families, medical professionals who prescribe pump therapy and the manufacturers. The opportunity to discuss the benefits of this treatment has proved extremely successful in the past and has been one of the prime factors in the increase of insulin pump usage in the UK.

We have a programme of activities to provide the medical profession with the opportunity to obtain the latest information about insulin pump therapy. This we achieve by making PowerPoint presentations to:

G.P. Surgeries.

Hospital Patient Evenings/Days.

Strategic Health Authorities.

Primary Care Trusts.

Our success in this area has meant that prior to April 2002, when the structure of the NHS changed. Of the 119 Local Health Authorities that existed at that time, 64 funded pump therapy.

Under the new NHS structure there are now 28 Strategic Health Authorities, who control 304 Primary Care Trusts and despite NICE Guidance many of these will not fund pumps automatically, a good case has still to be made.

Diabetes UK. Another important area is our liaison with Diabetes UK, where we have undertaken the education and training of their Care Line Operators. This has given them sufficient knowledge of pump therapy to be able to talk with confidence to diabetics who phone them for information on insulin pumps.

We publish a quarterly Newsletter, originally for children. However this is beginning to grow and now includes many articles of interest to adults. We are constantly looking for contributors to the Newsletter and would be pleased to receive any contributions on any relevant subject, particularly patient experiences.

If you would like input to come and make a presentation to your hospital or group, please contact us. We are prepared to go anywhere! Finally, if you would like to start a Pump Club, or be a Pump Pal in your area, please contact us. The position is unpaid but we will meet out of pocket expenses.