A study of blood glucose testing modalities in people with type 2 diabetes attending diabetes clinics at an acute hospital

Ronan O; Martin Gardner; Colin Davenport; Tommy Kyaw Tun; Najia Siddique; John H. McDermott; Seamus Sreenan

doi:10.1530/endoabs.115.P19

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Endocrine Abstracts (2026) 115 P19 | DOI: 10.1530/endoabs.115.P19

IES2025 Research, Audit and Quality Improvement Projects Physical Posters (55 abstracts)

A study of blood glucose testing modalities in people with type 2 diabetes attending diabetes clinics at an acute hospital

Ronan O’Farrell ¹ , Martin Gardner ^1,2 , Colin Davenport ^1,2 , Tommy Kyaw Tun ^1,2 , Najia Siddique ² , John H. McDermott ^1,2 & Seamus Sreenan ^1,2

Author affiliations

¹Royal College of Surgeons, Dublin, Ireland; ²Connolly Hospital, Dublin, Ireland

For many patients with Type 2 Diabetes (T2D), effective management requires regular blood glucose monitoring. While traditionally, this has relied on self-monitoring of blood glucose (SMBG), Continuous Glucose Monitoring (CGM) has emerged as an alternative that can reduce risk of hypoglycemia, lower HbA1c and reduce hospital admissions for patients with T2D on insulin. CGM is not currently reimbursed for T2D patients in Ireland. This study was approved by the local ethics committee. Our goal was to determine the scale of the resulting lack of access to CGM in people with T2D in Ireland. We recorded the blood glucose monitoring modalities of patients attending outpatient diabetes clinics in secondary care. The proportion of patients using SMBG and CGM and their medical therapies were recorded. Data were collected through a self-administered survey from participants attending outpatient diabetes clinics. We found that, of 137 patients surveyed, only 17 (12%) were using CGM for blood glucose monitoring, while 102 (74%) were using SMBG; the remainder were not testing glucose. Amongst 45 patients on insulin therapy, 15 (33%) were using a CGM, and 29 (64%) were using SMBG. This study highlights that a preponderance of patients with T2D in a representative Irish secondary care cohort do not use CGM for blood glucose monitoring, even amongst those on insulin therapy. These findings underscore the lack of access to CGM amongst patients with T2D on insulin in Ireland, which is potentially compromising their level of care and quality of life.