Working Life: 'We are early risers - a leftover from having a competitive swimmer in the family for 10 years' - Professor Seán Dinneen

Sat, 29 Aug, 2020 - 06:00

Professor Seán Dinneen, consultant endocrinologist NUI Galway and HSE national clinical lead for diabetes

6.30am

We are early risers - a leftover from having a competitive swimmer in the family for 10 years. Breakfast consists of fruit, cereal, an egg, porridge-bread and Morning Ireland.

8am

A case-based conference/teaching session with our team of junior doctors. One of the things I love about clinical medicine is that you never stop learning.

I then have a catch-up call with clinical programme colleagues as we are working with Diabetes Ireland to urge people with concerns about diabetes to seek medical advice from their pharmacist, GP or hospital diabetes team. We also want to reassure people living with diabetes that services are resuming.

10am

Preparing a response to a parliamentary question (PQ) asking why Ireland does not have a national diabetes registry. My national lead role has taught me that in a civilised democracy like ours, there are lots of ways of agitating for policy change. Such questions about our service are potential vehicles for change or quality improvement.

11am

Chairing a Zoom video conference with colleagues from participating centres in our Health Research Board (HRB)-funded D1 Now Study. The pilot study is evaluating a new (young person-centred) approach to delivering outpatient diabetes care for individuals aged 18-25 years living with type 1 diabetes. I am bowled over by how committed these diabetes healthcare professionals are to keeping the trial protocol going despite a global pandemic.

1pm

Lunch is eaten on the go or while catching up on emails at my desk. A sandwich, an apple, a coffee and a treat.

3pm

As part of a weekly diabetic foot round, I review five or six hospitalised patients with diabetic foot ulceration alongside colleagues from podiatry, vascular and orthopaedic surgery, tissue viability and diabetes specialist nursing. This is the coalface of diabetes care and a constant reminder of why I took on the National Lead role: to reduce the burden of preventable diabetes complications including limb loss.

7pm

A 5km run or an exercise class with one of my grown-up children. Thanks to the pandemic we have three of our offspring back living in Galway for a few months.