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Does proximity to your T1D health care provider impact where you choose to live?
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No but that was due to ignorance. I assumed living 30 minutes outside of a city of 220K people would provide adequate healthcare options. I was wrong. Next time I move I will absolutely be checking for endos accepting new patients.
NO was my answer. Living in a large Metropolitan area, many Endos to pick from. Actually, my Endo is in walking distance.
My T1D is under control. If I had to change Endo it would not be difficult
I answered “No”. But, really, “Yes.” Where I lived most of my life was a five hours, each way, drive to my Endocrinologist. Location to employment, housing, family and healthcare all play a part. As the saying go, it’s location, location, location.
With telemedicine, there’s a lot more options for finding an endocrinologist that’s a good fit.
Yes, I wouldn’t move to a small town if there wasn’t a great endo I could easily relate to nearby. And with the amazing endo team I have now, I’d prefer to stay close to them. If I was to look for a new house, it would be within a 20 minute drive to my team!
My husband and I had conversations of when we retired moving to a Caribbean island. After looking at pharmacies and doctors we decided that would not be an option. A diabetic has to have healthcare nearby or it maybe a challenge.
I answered “no” bc we live in portion of PA where medical services are highly competitive. Availability of medical services for Type 1’s would be a consideration in the unlikely event that we would move.
I’m a big city girl (an urban rat I guess) have been all my life. As has been said above – lots of Endo’s to choose from. Of course knowing who the good Endo’s are (and who the Endorks are) is important. When I’ve moved it’s been an arduous search. I’m doing well with my T1D mgt (great A1C – in the normal range, and high TIR, so telehealth works very well for me. If we didn’t need Rx’s for insulin and the prior authroization for just about everything, distance wouldn’t be the issue it is for many of us with T1D.
I said no because I moved from CT to Dallas a year ago. Unfortunately, I still haven’t found an endo in Dallas. Anyone have any recommendations? My endo back east is wonderful and I’ve been traveling back to see her quarterly but I really need to find someone in the Dallas area.
With zoom, it doesn’t as much. However, I do travel to see my endo. I just don’t trust anyone else. And, after 30 years, I know no one cares as much as his office about maintain and improving my health.
It hasn’t in the past, but I’ve always lived in the suburbs close to abundant healthcare.
I would not move to be close to my endo. I live in a rural area so it was years before I found one close. So I only saw my primary and my diabetes educator nurse until I found my current endo. I still have to drive a bit but it’s worth it and happy to have one in the ‘area’!
She make sure Dietetic is on track
We were considering moving from the Puget Sound to a warmer state. Proximity to health care was in the top three items of consideration. We decided not to move yet. I have excellent care at the University of Washington Medical Center and its clinics and would need that world-class care anywhere I might move to later. Besides T1D, I have had a kidney transplant, and have had a brain tumor removed. I would need care for all those aspects of my health.
I live 20 miles from my endo’s office. If I moved, I would want equivalent access to my doctor and other specialists.
I am considering moving over 2 hours away from my Endo. Will travel to keep seeing her.
I have to drive an hour there and an hour back every three months because there is not one available in my area, Seneca, SC.
My biggest consideration in deciding to move from a large urban area to a small city/rural area is availability of diabetes care. We have a second home two plus hours from my diabetes clinic. There is no diabetes clinics nor endos closer. Gives me pause to think of moving here full time.
I have lived in rural areas most of the 51 years I have been T1D.
I have never had optimal diabetes care due to there being no such thing as an endocrinologist or none close enough or none taking new patients.
So I just do the best I can with my Primary Care Physician and my own research.
I chose “no” because it hasn’t in the past…but, the times are changing. As my spouse and I age our dependence on healthcare has definitely increased. We live in an urban environment that includes several large medical/research centers with clinics. Even with the number of endos, finding one accepting new patients is now very difficult. If I had to rely on my GP, I’d be basically on my own with any pump/glucose management questions. So…it will be a consideration with our next move.
They somewhat do. While working as a travel nurse, I couldn’t find an endocrinologist who worked with insulin pumps in the good size city I was in. So I drove back to St. Louis, MO to see mine. After that I made sure that there would be one who worked with pumps before accepting an out of state assignment. This was 2015, so there should have been.
The opposite is true for me. I choose an endo who is relatively close to where I live. Will this be the case in the future? I really don’t know.
I answered “Other”. I was blessed that when I moved away from home after college, I married and moved to a city that had one of the top endocrinologists in the region. I’ve lived the same place for over 40 years. Proximity to a new healthcare provider would be a factor in choosing a retirement location.