Before I created the diabetes club on the Cal State Long Beach campus, in Fall of 2021 I created the initiative for sharps containers to be inserted in the university student restrooms, which are constantly populated on campus. Although the idea was accepted and given support by executives in the university student union in October that year, I did reach challenges beforehand, and was not given the green light to expand this initiative outside of the building. When I spoke to health representatives beforehand, I was not able to progress any action or receive any follow up after because “those living with diabetes carry their own supplies and don’t need additional sharps containers.”
This only pushed me to keep looking for those willing to understand the fact that the expansion of resources should be created because it’s not only going to benefit those living with diabetes that may have the resources to safely dispose of sharps, but also those individuals with no resources or limited and scarce resources. Not only that, but accommodations that are accessible at multiple areas throughout the day can make a difference in feeling accepted and welcomed on campus. The sharps container box symbolizes acceptance and breaks the negative stigma of diabetes by being displayed in public bathrooms.
In the field of advocacy, it is important to use your skills and keep pushing until someone accepts to listen and is willing to see different perspectives. As word got around on how much these sharps containers were getting filled, the sharps containers began expanding in other buildings and departments! I found this out due to a meeting I held in June this year with multiple leaders within campus. As our disability center saw my efforts and passion to provide more resources, I was then invited to the student health and wellness committee to further elevate my voice and be a part of the student health services committee and further advocate and share ideas across campus. Being in the committee, I have added diabetes to the wellness roster, am currently working on creating an A1c testing event, and created a bookmark of diabetes resources on campus. Also, I was just recently invited to speak on a student panel at our upcoming equity in healthcare conference happening in August.
Although it has taken years for advocacy efforts to keep continuing in fruition, it is still progress that not only helps current students but future students too. Due to the sharps containers being filled frequently, they had to put a time for disposal every two months because of the high need for them. The sharps container isn’t just a staple of more resources for those students and staff needing them, but the start of having conversations about diabetes and how to better provide more knowledge about it with the lens of support and understanding. After all, the word diabetes will forever be engraved at our campus here at CSULB because we won this year’s outstanding organization of the year and have our club organization name on the student life and development plaque in our university student union building!
