"Dr. Abrahamson, if I pay you enough money, can you fix this?"
Patrick Grotto, a patient with type 2 diabetes, was focused on managing his business, assigning everything else to others to handle. What he didn't realize was: you can't 'assign' your diabetes management to someone else.
Doctors previously had told Patrick his life expectancy was dangerously compromised. He had a strong family history of diabetes and heart disease. And with a perilously high A1C level (a test that reflects ones' average glucose level) of over 11% (the normal is less than 6%), Patrick was intermittently losing and regaining his sight.
Despite being treated at two world-class hospitals, this went on for years. Patrick said: "They couldn't stabilize me. They were monitoring my decline."
Then Patrick had a heart attack. His doctors had him taking eight pills a day and injecting himself with insulin three times a day in an effort to control his diabetes and his heart disease.
But the treatment wasn't working.
Patrick knew he was a ticking time bomb.
That's when Patrick came to Joslin, about a year ago January. He had just undergone his first heart surgery for blocked arteries. Patrick's medicine regimen needed a major overhaul - as did his attitude toward controlling his diabetes.
I quickly enrolled him in Joslin's DO IT program (Diabetes Outpatient Intensive Treatment Program). The program pairs each patient with a skilled, multi-disciplinary team of diabetes professionals for an individualized "diabetes tune-up." We determined that Patrick needed to get his A1C level down to 7 - although higher than the 'normal' level of 6, this is a safe level of glucose control for someone with diabetes and heart disease.
All previous efforts at getting Patrick to maintain control of his A1C levels had failed. We had to find a way to get through to him. Patrick is an analytical thinker, so we presented his A1C numbers as his "credit scores for diabetes." This was a turning point. He got it
Patrick says "Joslin had an approach from day 1 and they never wavered from it. I was walked through the numbers and what they meant in a way that I could understand, and they told me what I had to do to take control. Finally, someone spoke in a language that made sense to me!"
His health and diabetes control improved dramatically. He became vigilant about his numbers. His A1C count trended downward - from a high of 11.3 down to 7. Maintaining that level was a major milestone for Patrick. When asked why he could manage his diabetes now, when just a year before there was little hope for his survival, Patrick simply said, "What Joslin did better than anyone else is they altered my consciousness about this disease."
Patrick is back at Joslin every three months like clockwork having all of his medications reviewed and "tuned up." Despite the earlier dire predictions, he is back to fully living his life. He has had no more cardiac events and his diabetes is under control. "No one could fix me," Patrick said. "And then Joslin helped me fix myself."
DO IT is just one of the Joslin programs that your generosity helps make possible - programs that save the lives of patients like Patrick. We take great pride in our amazing team of researchers and clinicians ... but never for a moment do we forget that it is people like you who help make our work possible.
As we continue our search for the cure, we hope you will be able to once again support our mission to treat every patient who needs Joslin's specialized care. We are battling a formidable foe and are very grateful for your support in our ongoing fight.
On behalf of the thousands of people with diabetes who come through our doors every year, I remain deeply grateful for your support.
Sincerely,
Martin J. Abrahamson, M.D.
Medical Director
Joslin Diabetes Center