You may wish to contact UI endocrinology outreach directly. They should know what is avialable in the state.
http://www.uihealthcare.com/depts/outreach/imendocrinology.html
There has to be a lot ot T1 diabetics (and maybe more support) in eastern Iowa, as Galesburg IL is a hub of Swedish immigration, and Scandinavians have twice the incidence of T1 diabetes as the rest of the world. A lot of them spread into eastern Iowa.
Keep trying, maybe tomorrow. With the weather they may have closed the office for the day.
Thanks for your comments. Your experience sounds like what I expected would be the case and encourages me to continue my quest.
I suppose it's hopeless to try to get the Type 1 community to lobby their doctors for more Type 1 specialists? I really think it would improve the standard of care.
I've talked to several practices to try to find somebody who specializes in Type 1 and the person I wind up talking to (most often a nurse) usually sounds like they can't even understand the question ... they insist that all their doctors specialize in both Type 1 and Type 2 and don't see why it would make a difference. Frustrating to say the least.
I'm trying to reach the Iowa JDRF office but haven't been able to get through.
In my experience (as a 40+ year type 1), endos with an understanding of type 1 adults (those of us with complications, for example) are rare. I have found 2, one who was part of a large endo group and chose to focus on type 1, and my current endo who IS a type 1. The understanding and advice I recieve is unquestionably much better from such a doctor, even compared to those who have had many more years experience. It is worth the effort to search for one.
I would call the JDRF office in Cedar Rapids. The staff there is familiar with all the adult type 1 endos in the area.
(319) 393-3850
Thanks for the tip. They couldn't suggest anyone in Iowa who is a Type 1 specialist but the link you included led us to an outreach endocrinologist who see patients once a month in a town only twenty miles from here .... instead of the hour and half to Iowa City which was the nearest endo we could find before. From what I read about him on-line (admittedly scanty) he sounds pretty good. So we have an appointment in a couple of months and we'll see how he turns out. I can't tell you how appreciative I am for all the support and suggestions from people on this forum. You guys are the greatest.
Thanks for everyone's suggestions and encouragement. I talked to a JDRF volunteer and she told me that there are NO adult Type 1 specialists in Iowa. I generally love living in a rural area in a rural midwest state but I guess this is one of the drawbacks. It seems like you have to be in a big city to find a Type 1 specialist. It seems kind of crazy because the University of Iowa hospital in Iowa City is a large teaching hospital with many endocrinologists on staff so you'd think they'd have at least one who specializes in Type 1.
Can you suggest some specific way to locate an adult Type 1 specialist. I've made several calls but haven't had a lot of luck.
Hi! I'm from Iowa, and yes, we have an endo that is for type 1s, and although ours is a ped endo since my daughter is only 10, but there are adult type 1 specialists in Iowa as well. Do you live in central Iowa?