Archive for 06/28/15

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My Spin On The 2011 Roche Social Media Summit

2011 Roche Social Media Summit Casual Group Photo

A.k.a. "Lean On Me."

I’m back east, having returned from the left coast & the 2011 Roche Social Media Summit, but for some reason my body is still navigating through time zones - SO Right now, my energy is hovering somewhere around Kentucky.

With that being said, I have to say I was really pleased with this year’s Summit.

Here’s a brief 411 (OK, I tried to be brief, but that’s really tough) on the Summit with more posts to follow on all of the subject matter, etc.

This is my third year attending the Roche Social Media Summit, and seeing the other members of The Clan of Diabetes Bloggers is always incredibly special, but this year it felt special to see the folks from Roche too! They are “D Clan” by more than association.

They’ve taken the time to get to know us, both individually and just as importantly, collectively as a community.

Everyone (blogger or not) on Wednesday greeted one another with hugs and a familiarity and that was a wonderful thing.

Cut to the Reunion Dinner later that evening, where we all had the opportunity to catch up and participate in the live twitter #dsma chat

Thursday we got down to business (after some participated in a killer workout with Ginger & Scottie J,) of Diabetes and Social Media.

We discussed a multitude of things, including, but not limited to; costs, as in helping the patient to keep their diabetes costs down. I’ll give Accu-Chek props for doing just that and have implemented the Cash Card Program for 3rd party insurance & cash paying customers .

How does the Cash Card help?

For those with Third Party Insurance it means

 Paying no more than $15 on every test strip prescription*

 If co-pay is greater than $15: discount up to $50 for 50/51-ct purchase, 100/102-ct or greater purchase

For Cash Paying Customers

 Patient takes card to the pharmacy to be entered as primary insurance*

 Discount up to $40 for 100/102-ct or greater purchase  Discount up to $20 on 50/51-ct purchase

For more info on this program, visit www.accu-chekconnect.com

It's all about diabetes options, and this is a great option for those with test strip cover issues re: their insurance, or lack there of.

We discussed How pharma can better engage with their patients both on-line and off and Digital & Social Media Demographics such as:

 Globally, more than 76 million people with diabetes will be online by 2014, a 142 percent increase from today.

 Hundred, thousands of blogs are dedicated to living with diabetes.

 230,000 Facebook members, 18 and over, list diabetes as one of their interests.

 Diabetes is the fifth most popular search term among all health conditions.

 PwD spend over 20% of their time online and in social networks. This has grown 66% from 2009 to 2010.

We discussed PODS . What are PODS? PODS are a nationwide Signature program of monthly meet-ups for women with diabetes around the U.S. courtesy of Diabetes Sisters . org. And are the brainchild of my DiabetesSister & DiabetesSisters founder, Brandy Barns.

Before lunch we had the chance to hear the the Head of Communications for IDF (International Diabetes Federation), Isabella Platon.

I think the IDF is a really wonderful organization dedicated to making sure every child/pwd with diabetes on the planet is able to receive insulin & medical care, and according to their website: IDF’s mission is to promote diabetes care, prevention and a cure worldwide.

I'm all about and for what they do! BUT I'm going to be honest, I felt a disconnect when Isabella spoke.

Not about the subject matter, she knew her diabetes facts.

No, I felt a disconnect with our diabetes on-line community. I don’t care if you read my blog or not, that’s not what I’m talking about.

I’m talking about making a genuine effort to know what the community that your speaking to and with.

Engage with us on twitter, facebook, etc.

Be aware of what's going on in the community and the projects that our community is working on, both on-line and off.

Knowing the audience that your speaking to is a wonderful thing and will help all parties to get the word out!

FYI: We had the opportunity to hear the President of the IDF, Jean Claude Mbanya speak at dinner, and I have to say, Jean Claude is one INCREDIBLE, MESMERIZING & INSPIRING PWD. More on both IDF and Jean Claude later.

During lunch we had the opportunity to hear Jeffrey Brewer, father of a type 1 and President & CEO of JDRF. Jeff is “good people” and he sees the big diabetes picture.

Jeff discussed and fielded questions regarding The Artificial Pancreas Pancreas, research regarding the cure, embracing adults with type 1 back into The JDRF family. As a type 1 child who is now all types of grown up, I really appreciate being welcomed back.

The Rise, Fall and Rise of Jacques Benveniste

There have been many scientists who have looked into the working mechanism of homeopathy, and whether it is possible for a substance so heavily diluted in the process of homeopathic potentization, to actually work

Benveniste was one of them, who came up with the idea of the 'memory' of water, and set about to test the hypothesis. He was a 'real' scientist; that is, he was a scientist with an open and enquiring mind. He was not a scientist of the 'Sense about Science' kind, committed to little other than disproving something that is a threat to their paymasters, the Big Pharma companies, who fund SAS, and the host of homeopathy denialists of follow them.

Benveniste suffered because he pursued his science, lost his career, and eventually his life. He was undone by fraudsters masquerading as anti-fraud scientists. His work has been assessed in this film, a film that demonstrates the lengths that ConMed, and Big Pharma will go in order to discredit those they see as opponents to their business, and their trade in toxic, disease-inducing, and often, lethal drugs.

http://www.dailymotion.com/video/xiqyt1_jacques-benveniste-heretic_

It is a 30 minute film, well worth the time to see.

Homeopathy and the BBC

The BBC have been heavily infiltrated. They no longer recognise that there is a 'health debate' going on out here, dominated by the failing bureaucracy of ConMed, and the power and wealth of Big Pharma (who now control the BBC), but with that ever-growing number of people who are searching for a safer, more effective way of dealing with the illnesses, and maintaining their health, than ConMed offers them. The BBC no longer tell the truth, the whole truth, or indeed, anything like the truth!

For anyone looking to participate in the health debate, the mainstream media is no longer of any use to them. National Newspapers and national broadcasters are content to reproduce, without question, the press releases of Big Pharma. I hear regularly on the BBC about another new conventional medical 'breakthroughs - and how we could expect new drugs in 15 years time.

Always a triumph of hope over experience.

And the BBC is happy to avoid telling you about the full picture of mayhem currently being caused by ConMed treatment and drugs, and to withold giving you information on the lies, deceit and corruption in which Big Pharma companies have become embroiled, especially in the USA.

Yet it was not always like this. I have recently been talking with a former producer of a BBC programmes, now retired, and he has drawn my attention to this film: "Q.E.D. Homeopathy".

http://www.alternativemedicineanswers.com/blog/alternative-medicine/qed-homeopathy

It is a film well worth watching. What's more, it is as relevant today as it was when it was first broadcast. It demonstrates that people don't have to wait 15 years for treatment! And also that farmers can stop wasting their money on conventional treatment, and turn to something much safer, more effective, and less costly.

Ice Capades In Vegas

Sometimes we forget that before our parents became parents they lived completely different lives - they were completely different people. They did amazing things, throwing caution to the wind so they could live their dreams.

Sometimes the dreams defer or change because of life and circumstances.

The old life gets put on a shelf - along with the pictures and the memories.

Occasionally a glimpse of that old life appears - a snapshot or a memory shared when pouring over old photos.

I was and am always in awe of my mothers old life. She was an a professional Ice Skater in The Ice Capades.

She made her own money at a time when most women did not - and she made more money than most of the men.

She performed all over the US and Canada, and had the opportunity to live her dream.

Her picture was on billboards, stars like Gene Kelly and Judy Garland waited in line to meet her and her cohorts, and George Petty voted her one of the 16 most Outstanding Ice Capets in both talent and beauty.

She gave it all up and married my dad. She became a mom and raised six children.

She gave birth to her first daughter at 22 and her last daughter in her mid forties.

She worked hard and helped my father start a business.

She had her share of heartaches, including three of her six children having type 1 diabetes.

And she lost her middle daughter to the disease.

The woman who dealt with diabetes 24X7 used to be a completely different person before my siblings and I came to be.

Through it all she remained the strongest, toughest, most beautiful woman I know.

She is the one who taught me to pull myself up by my bootstraps whenever life decided to throw me a curve ball - and to do it with a smile on my face.

She is the one who taught me by example that "the show must indeed go on!"

I was incredibly proud of my mom when I accompanied her to The Ice Capades 70th Reunion in Vegas last week.

Since she was one of the oldest skaters there, she was treated like royalty.

Younger skaters came up to have their pictures taken with her. Some recorded her voice because they considered her to be part of their history. She was interviewed for several podcasts and for the Ice Capades historical archives.

There were moments when I started to cry from shear pride. At one point I went up to thank a skater for interviewing my mother and for being so attentive and nice to her and ended up crying.

"Your mother is wonderful and she's living skating history, I'm incredibly honored to have been able to interview her." And then he gave me a hug and told me I was a good daughter-which made me cry even more.

It was a hectic, emotional, and crazy three days - and I wouldn't have missed it for the world!

LOVE YOU MOM!