Ongoing diabetes care, online
Diabetes is a condition you live with every day, and good control depends on regular, engaged review. Our Irish-registered doctors review your blood-sugar control, medication, and overall risk via secure video call, and coordinate investigations or specialist input where needed.
This is structured, clinically supervised care — not an automatic continuation. If your control has changed or new symptoms have appeared, we assess them properly.
Type 1, type 2 and gestational diabetes
Diabetes means there is too much glucose in your blood because your body cannot make or use insulin properly. The WHO describes three main types:
- Type 1: the body makes too little insulin, so daily insulin is needed. Neither its cause nor a way to prevent it is known.
- Type 2: the body stops using insulin properly. It accounts for more than 95% of people with diabetes, is often preventable, and is now also seen in children.
- Gestational diabetes: high glucose during pregnancy, found through pregnancy screening rather than symptoms. It raises the risk of type 2 diabetes later in life for the mother and possibly the child.
Most of this page is about type 2, which is the kind an online review can help you keep on track.
Signs of type 2 diabetes
Type 2 diabetes often comes on slowly, and the early signs are easy to put down to a busy life. The HSE lists these symptoms:
- feeling very thirsty
- peeing more than usual, especially at night
- feeling very tired
- losing weight without trying
- infections that keep coming back, or cuts and grazes that heal slowly
- numbness or tingling in your hands or feet
- blurred vision
- itching around the genitals, or repeated thrush
Many people have no symptoms at all. The WHO notes that type 2 symptoms can be so mild that they go unnoticed for years, and the HSE says diabetes is often not found until health problems start to appear. If you have any of these signs, or you are worried about your risk, a blood test is the way to find out.
How is diabetes diagnosed?
Diabetes is not usually diagnosed at a single consultation. It needs at least two results in the diabetes range, from a fasting glucose test, an oral glucose tolerance test or an HbA1c test. The test doctors use most is HbA1c. It shows your average blood glucose over the past 2 to 3 months, so you do not need to fast for it. In Ireland, results are given in mmol/mol:
- below 42 mmol/mol: normal
- 42 to 47 mmol/mol: prediabetes, meaning your glucose is higher than it should be but not yet in the diabetes range
- 48 mmol/mol or above: diabetes range, confirmed with a second positive result
Prediabetes is worth taking seriously. It is a warning, and it is also a point where lifestyle changes can make a difference.
Once you have diabetes, HbA1c is also how your control is tracked. Most people with type 2 diabetes aim for 53 mmol/mol or lower, but your doctor will agree a target that suits you. Always ask for your number and what it means.
The checks that keep you well
Good diabetes care is mostly about catching problems early. The HSE recommends:
- HbA1c at least twice a year
- blood pressure and cholesterol at least once a year, because diabetes raises the risk of heart disease and stroke
- kidney tests (blood and urine) at least once a year
- eye screening: the HSE's Diabetic RetinaScreen is free for people with diabetes aged 12 and older
- your feet: check them yourself every day, because nerve damage can stop you feeling an injury
- teeth and gums: regular dental check-ups, as diabetes raises the risk of gum disease
- the flu vaccine: free at your GP or pharmacy
If you are thinking about pregnancy, talk to your doctor or diabetes team as early as you can. Extra planning makes a safe pregnancy much more likely.
What an online doctor can help with
A lot of diabetes care is conversation and review, and that works well by video. Your doctor can:
- go through your latest HbA1c, glucose readings and other results with you
- review your medicines, side effects and how they fit your day
- review ongoing treatment where it is clinically appropriate
- talk through food, activity and weight, and refer you to our chronic disease, nutrition or weight management consultations
- check that your annual tests, eye screening and foot checks are up to date
- arrange specialist input when your control is not where it should be
Some things need you in the room. A video call cannot examine your feet for loss of feeling, look at the back of your eyes, or take blood. Whenever they are needed, your doctor may ask for tests or a physical examination, and will tell you what needs to happen in person and where. Bigger treatment changes are often best made with your own GP practice or hospital diabetes team, who see your full records over time.
When to get help urgently
Contact your doctor or diabetes team soon if your symptoms suddenly get worse, if you notice new symptoms between check-ups, or if your eyesight changes (blurring, new floaters or sensitivity to light).
A hypo (low blood sugar) can usually be treated at home with about 15 g of fast-acting sugar, as your diabetes team has shown you, then a repeat check after 10 minutes. The HSE describes a severe hypo as one where you need help from another person. If someone with diabetes is very drowsy, is not responding or cannot be woken, call 112 or 999.
Diabetic ketoacidosis (DKA) is a medical emergency. The HSE lists the warning signs as high blood glucose with ketones in the blood (3 mmol/l or more), stomach pain, fast breathing, feeling or being sick, and breath that smells sweet, like pear drops. If you have these, contact your diabetes team straight away, go to an emergency department, or call 112 or 999.
What is covered in Ireland
Diabetes is one of the conditions on the HSE Long-Term Illness Scheme. If you have diabetes and live in Ireland, you can get approved medicines and medical equipment for it free of charge, whatever your income. Ask your GP or pharmacist about applying if you are not registered yet.
The HSE Chronic Disease Management Programme runs structured reviews in general practice, including a prevention strand for people at risk of heart disease or diabetes. Ask your GP whether you qualify. Diabetic RetinaScreen is free for everyone with diabetes aged 12 and over.
It also helps to carry medical ID that says you have diabetes, and to save an "ICE" (in case of emergency) contact in your phone. Diabetes Ireland is a good source of support and practical information.
Book your review
Continue your diabetes care with an Irish-registered doctor.
Chronic Disease & Ongoing Care Consultation
Nutrition Specialist Consultation
For a new or sudden problem, book a GP Consultation Online.
For more background, read our article Diabetes: a silent disease.
Sources
- Diabetes fact sheet (WHO)
- Symptoms of type 2 diabetes (HSE)
- Health problems related to type 2 diabetes (HSE)
- Pre-diabetes (HSE)
- HbA1c testing (HSE)
- New diagnostic criteria for diabetes (HbA1c) (Diabetes UK)
- Hypoglycaemia (HSE)
- Ketones and DKA (HSE)
- Long-Term Illness Scheme (HSE)
- First report of the Chronic Disease Management Prevention Programme in general practice (HSE)