One thing that diabetics should have every year is an eye scan, normally at a hospital. This is to check the eye's retina which is subject to gradual damage (called diabetic retinopathy) which a diabetic may not be able to detect for themselves until there is significant (permanent) damage.
This was my first time, it took about 40 minutes at the hospital, though I had to take the day off work as my pupils would stay dilated. The process was as follows:
- Get an appointment, an important step as the waiting list was 3 months!
- A nurse puts drops in your eyes so that your pupils stay dilated.
- Wait for 15 minutes or more for the drops to take effect. I could still read my book, but I listened to a podcast instead to pass the time.
- Have the digital photo taken. This was entirely painless, I just looked into the lens of a large camera which then flashed to take a photo. The eye expert immediately checked my scan with me on a computer screen, luckily I was clear of any damage (which would have shown up as pink crystals).
- The photo is kept on record as a comparison for my next checkup.
- I then traveled back home on the bus wearing sunglasses to protect my eyes.
