KITLIVING
data and downloading it is a hassle. You
may be able to see 24 hours of results on
a CGM receiver but you can't see beyond
that. You have to get to a computer to
download it, to see it fully, and then be
able to properly consider making changes
to your medication, if needed. Also what
help is seeing what has happened in the
past? My diabetes is real-time, therefore
I need real-time feedback on how to
manage it."
Not waiting
The community movement
#WeAreNotWaiting started on social
media in the US a couple of years ago
with one of the first community projects
known as NightScout (read more in
the Read More section at the end of
the article). The main participants were
initially parents of children with diabetes
who wanted to know their kids were safe
in the night (hence 'night scout'). One
participant discovered that they could
connect a CGM receiver to a Smartphone
making all the readings viewable on the
phone's screen. Omer explains, "They
found a hack to get real-time access to
the data from the CGM receiver onto a
mobile phone which meant that they now
had the data they wanted on the device
they wanted it on."
As it happens, the newer CGM models
do now work on smartphones, a solution
that has been in development for a while.
Critics of hacking point out that monies
best put into developing the products is
being diverted into making sure the devices
can't be hacked; the manufacturers do
not want to be held liable for anything
untoward that might happen to patients
using their technological solutions. So it
is understandable that the manufacturers
want to be in charge of the products they
manufacture.
Says Omer, "This is about patient
control, where they can innovate based
on their own requirements. The patient
decides what to do with their data.
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We've been able to send data to a
smart watch, taking my real-time data
to a location I can review in real-time. I
am using the technology I already have
better and not being dictated to by the
device manufacturers and restricted to
their devices for reviewing my data. The
movement is not a business or company,
its people with a shared interest in using
our Diabetes technology and data better
and sharing this with others."
Hacked off
Hacking is a very broad term, often with
extremely negative connotations. The
main aspect of the hacking being done
continued over