The Touch

Did any of you watch the TV show "Touch" last night? They had a man with diabetes that was unconscious on the floor and someone gave the advice to give him an insulin shot! First thing that came to my mind was how do you know he's low? He never checked his blood sugar. It ALWAYS scares me that I will pass out from a LOW and someone will give me INSULIN!!! (I can hear them now....She WAS a nice person....LOL)

So, I was watching closely to see what he would do and he actually had a Glucagon kit. Ok, so they did get that part right but, I never saw him mix it. He just took it right out of the little red container and injected it into what looked like his vein like you draw blood for lab work...WHAT? Within seconds he was ok. I might be wrong here but, doesn't it take a few minutes for that stuff to work? Sooo much wrong with that scene!!! I know it's just TV but, you would think that they would do some research and get it right.

Accuracy is most likely the last thing on their minds. Now drama- that's where the money is lol.

I've watched a few TV shows over the years where they get things wrong.Greys Anatomy is one where they get it right but makes it SO dramatic.

I watched this episode too! As soon as my husband and I saw the man passed out, we both looked at each other and laughed. (I know...we are sick) We already knew he was going to be diabetic. Not only did the guy advise Sutherland to give him insulin...which turned out to be glucagon...but he told him it was in the refrigerator!!!! The glucagon kit is designed to have a long shelf life. That is why it has to be reconstituted! I wish I payed closer attention to the scene later at the restaurant.

You would think that a show where details and nuances are key, the writers would have taken the time to be accurate on something like this. Really ruined the show for me. That may sound harsh, but it's like they didn't care that those details were inaccurate. They were just desperate for another link to pull the story together so they threw it in at the last minute and slapped it together.

Panic Room was pretty lame too. The diabetic girl was conscious and talking, obviously quite alert. Yet a shot of glucagon was the only thing that would bring her blood sugars up.

I actually commented on this show in the thread about lows. But I'm confused. How did you guys know it was glucagon?? I heard the guy on the phone say, give him insulin, it's in the fridge. Then I saw him take out a syringe and give him a shot. I guess I'm not too observant! I also don't know if glucagon looks different than a syringe of insulin because I've never seen it. (I live alone and my cat doesn't have thumbs)

I could see turning a few minutes to work into a few seconds for the sake of dramatic timing. But mixing highs and lows, insulin and glucagon, that's not only dumb but scary because next time someone is passed out from a hypo someone will say, "get his insulin, I saw it on tv!"

I actually just saw the Panic Room movie the other day and I watched that part of it really carefully. Actually they did a good job of the girl not doing well. And the mom was looking for "sugar" i all the food packets. It still was not perfect but at least they showed it. I can't remember if the kit was labeled or if the guy that gave her the shot mixed it but it was interesting how long they had the girl acting low.

Hey Zoe, I figured it was glucagon because he took out a syringe from the glucagon kit. The needle is much larger than an insulin syringe.

Very observant! I usually watch tv with half my brain because that's all that's needed. But when a more complex show comes around I have to rally myself to pay better attention.

So they got the glucagon right but called it "insulin"? My guess is because they know your average viewer has heard of insulin and diabetics, but wouldn't know what glucagon is. Yikes!

Well, I'm not always that observant! But,when I heard them say he had diabetes it caught my attention.

We recorded the show, so we were able to back it up and watch it again...with our jaws on the floor. Yes, it did look like a Glucagon kit and syringe, but they definitely said insulin. It is so irresponsible. If FOX TV wants to "use" diabetes for dramatic effect, it would be nice if they used it accurately instead of disseminating false, and potentially deadly, information.

On the positive side, I posted about it on Facebook and was able to share accurate information with friends and acquaintances who asked intelligent questions. So maybe it will end up saving a life...one can only hope...

It is actually worse than the TV show. I see articles in the newspaper that switch hypoglycemia and diabetic coma interchangeably.

There was a local story about a man on a hike with his dog and he got low sugar and collapsed and died with no one around to help. The article stated that he did not have enough insulin,

These things are so often reported opposite of what they are, Even in the big news giants like NBC ABC CNN. They almost always get it wrong in some way,

I fear the day I'm passed out and someone that sees these reports tries to help with the opposite treatment.

Many people thing DIABETIC ---- HE NEEDS INSULIN done deal.