14/10/2026
Today I was reflecting on how diabetes awareness month will fall right in the midst of our election. I also thought how so much in diabetes care hinges on the government and how they shape the health system which includes not just our health but also our education, economic and social system.
I thought about the topic of world diabetes day, that will be 1 week after the general election and how the topic is early action on diabetes… Early action on diabetes can mean so many things. Good diabetes screening, care and prevention, but the reality is - all of this early action relies on a health system that is able to respond to the need.
I then thought, true early action means voting, and encouraging young people to vote for health. The health system they will rely on in years to come.
We know diabetes is strongly linked to family history - which means that every person we work with likely has young people in their lives who will be affected by diabetes. They deserve to be engaged in the politics that shape what that system looks like.
Then, while visiting a person today in their home, they complained about the health system and we spoke about how important it is to adequately fund primary health care and specialist (secondary) services. During the appointment they also proudly showed me photos of their grandchildren and mentioned one had just turned 18. And so I asked, is your moko enrolled to vote? They said they didn’t know - but then they said, they will ask them tonight!!! They were activated! Now that is what I call early action!
We need to act early! We need to make sure our young people are enrolled to vote before the 25th of October. There is no point us talking about early action in November when enrolment has closed!
Early action for diabetes = voting for health!
