The Power of Thoughtful Conversation

Henry Grossbard is a retired pharmacist who was diagnosed with type 2 diabetes over fifty years ago. He has used his unique career and lived experience to become a Diabetes Educator – and in 2018, was given an award by Diabetes Victoria for his contributions in establishing the Mornington Diabetes Support Group.

“I’ve always been interested in health. And chemistry. I worked as a pharmacist for many years and started my apprenticeship in 1954 and eventually bought my own business and progressed from there. But I’ve always had an interest in the background of health.

My family had a long history of diabetes, so I was told “you have such high-risk factor, the chances are you’re going to end up with diabetes.”

Henry first completed the (Diabetes Educator) course for his own benefit, and to increase his own knowledge, but also as a way to give back to the community: “It would give me better credentials in talking to people.”

These conversations became powerful moments of reassurance.

When I was talking to different clients I said: “Look, you’ve got a condition. You can live a full and healthy life. You can live despite diabetes.”

“You are not a ‘diabetic’. You have a condition known as diabetes - this is where language is very, very important”

Henry has seen diabetes care transform dramatically over the decades. “Many years ago, to check for diabetes you’d have to use a solution, either Benedict’s or Fehling’s solution, you had to add so many drops of urine in, boil it and it would change colour. That would indicate the level of glucose in the urine. It would only be positive if you had a massive overflow of glucose. Now, with the more sensitive blood testing, you can pick up a very small change in blood glucose. And that’s the way technology is.”