Cyclone Chido in Mayotte: the State must guarantee continuity of care for people living with diabetes

Grenoble, January 2, 2025 - The devastating passage of cyclone Chido on December 14, 2024 plunged the Mayotte archipelago into a humanitarian emergency. A French overseas department located in the Indian Ocean, Mayotte is home to over 320,000 inhabitants, 10% of whom live with diabetes, a rate twice that of mainland France.

Natural disasters, such as cyclone Chido, exacerbate the difficulties for affected populations, making access to essential needs - water, food, public services - particularly difficult. For people living with a chronic disease such as diabetes, these crises represent an even greater challenge.

Diabetes and natural disasters: a vital issue for patients

Diabetes requires constant management and uninterrupted access to treatments and medical devices (blood glucose meters, blood glucose test strips, insulin pumps, etc). Any interruption in treatment can lead to serious short- and long-term complications, and can even be fatal. For people living with type 1 diabetes and some people with type 2 diabetes, access to insulin is a matter of life and death.

A growing number of worrying testimonials

As the days go by, more and more testimonies from diabetes patients in Mayotte are coming in: no access to electricity to store their insulin or operate their insulin pump, no access to their blood glucose meter, and for some, increasing difficulties in accessing their vital treatments.

For people living with type 1 diabetes and some with type 2, access to insulin is a matter of life and death.

Our urgent appeal to the French government

Santé Diabète calls on the government to take immediate action to truly guarantee continuity of care for all people living with diabetes in Mayotte. This means ensuring that every person living with diabetes has access to a healthcare professional and/or a local healthcare facility to check on their state of health and the continuity of their treatment, as well as guaranteeing the availability and permanent access to the following essential supplies:

• Fast- and slow-acting insulins
• Oral medications
• Insulin injection devices (reusable pens, syringes)
• Blood glucose meters
• Blood glucose and acetone strips
• Lancets and needles
• Carbohydrates in case of hypoglycemia
• Batteries for medical devices
• For people using insulin pumps and/or blood glucose sensors: catheters, reservoirs and replacement sensors

 

Press contact:

Stéphane Besançon, managing director: stephane.besancon@santediabete.org