Ivana Bacik (Independent)

I welcome the Minister of State, and I welcome the opportunity to debate the issue of diabetes. There is, as the motion states, a great deal of public health concern about diabetes and it is a major issue for the health service. As others on this side of the House have pointed out, the motion is flawed. It is a rather bland motion with little of substance to say about the need for health education and awareness campaigns about diabetes. It simply acknowledges public health concerns, recognises work already being done, without saying what it is, and endorses efforts being made to highlight the benefits of a healthy lifestyle, while encouraging the HSE to continue to develop models for ongoing treatment and management of diabetes, without saying what these should involve.

We all know somebody who has diabetes. The condition has various types, each with a different prevalence, as the Minister of State is aware, from insulin-dependent diabetes, in which people must inject themselves with insulin every day, to a much less intrusive version. In recent weeks we have been receiving many e-mails about a particular aspect of diabetes, namely, the cost of diabetic foot disease. We have all received letters from the Diabetes Federation of Ireland, which I thank for bringing this to my attention. It was not an aspect of diabetes treatment about which I was knowledgeable.

We all acknowledge that, as Senator Mooney said, there are significant issues with regard to the prevention and treatment of diabetes and particularly the promotion of healthier lifestyles. However, on the issue of diabetic foot disease, which we are here to discuss, the particular problem that was brought to my attention by the campaign run by people with diabetes is the inadequacy of podiatry services available to diabetics. I hope I am pronouncing "podiatry" correctly.