struggling to buy blood tester

[mikegresty]

in 30 years I have only ever bought two as I have found that by e mailing company's such as Bayer and contour to name a few and explaining your need and approximate required useage most often results in them giving you a meter for free. I was recently given a gm lx sensor + meter for free which both tests for blood sugar levels and blood ketone levels (an earlier warning of ketones than urine testing) and both test strips are available on prescription. I summise it makes very good business sense for these company's to give away a meter maybe costing up to £50 rather than losing the thousands of pounds they'd lose on test strips if you obtained a meter from another company.

 

[smidge]

Hi Mike.

Why do you have to obtain your own meter at all? As a Type 1 insulin dependent diabetic, you should be given them on prescription when you need them. In fact, your DSN at the diabetes clinic has probably got a stock of them to hand out that have been given to her by the drugs companies.

Smidge

 

[mikegresty]

the ones they supply free are mostly untested models and we the patients are basically used as guinea pigs during the free meter testing cycle. and in many cases these meters are found to be faulty or inaccurate but at what cost to the patient ??. i currently have the meter I mentioned and a contour next USB meter both fully tested and completely free and without risk of inaccurate readings.

 

[mo1905]

I can't talk for every surgery or doctor but I can pretty much have any meter I want and they'll supply it. You're right though, most manufacturers supply free anyway.

 

[mikegresty]

the question is would you choose the skateboard or the rolls Royce to travel I find there are many advantages and improved results from the better meters on the market and who are we to refuse the best when so freely given

 

[Andy12345]

i wished they were free my tax buys them

 

[mikegresty]

yeah mine too but quite unlike the 1800's diabetics are no longer left to die a fact I'm sure we're all thankful of.

 

[Andy12345]

i think everyone should be given the best meters, they just arent free

 

[noblehead]

I bought my very first meter and have never paid for one since, always get one from my DSN or in recent times I've rang the meter company's direct (Bayer are good). It helps if you tell them you are type 1 and test 8+ times a day as that's what they want to hear

 

[Thommothebear]

I dont beleive they only give away untested meters. In fact I know this is not the case, the freebies are for the most part fine, I've had Abbot freestyle meters given to me by Abbot for year with no problems, the only truly bad meter I've had is one that I paid for.

 

[Beachbag]

the ones they supply free are mostly untested models and we the patients are basically used as guinea pigs during the free meter testing cycle. and in many cases these meters are found to be faulty or inaccurate but at what cost to the patient ??. i currently have the meter I mentioned and a contour next USB meter both fully tested and completely free and without risk of inaccurate readings.

Really? How fascinating! Over the years I've had a few meters, all of which have been totally reliable and as accurate as a meter can be. I've just started using a new free Contour, which I tested against my old free Breeze last night using the same blood sample. The result....just 0.1mmol difference

 

[mikegresty]

yes I find the contour to be very reliable and use the contour next USB meter myself

 

[mikegresty]

that's exactly right there's little money to be made on the meters and the biggest profits come from the amount of strips we use

I bought my very first meter and have never paid for one since, always get one from my DSN or in recent times I've rang the meter company's direct (Bayer are good). It helps if you tell them you are type 1 and test 8+ times a day as that's what they want to hear[/quotthat

 

[mikegresty]

that's exactly right there's little money to be made on the meters and the biggest profits come from the amount of strips we use

also my very first meter was a glucometer which ran a 2-3 minute test plus washing blood from strip with water and drying it off lol this cost £100 way back when and was approx half a house brick in size

 

[Dyadya_Maykl]

I am surprised by this conversation.
I do not think that any company will give out meters that are not accurate, or ones that are only in Beta.
I was on a Urine test kit when diagnosed - way back 1971. But, moved over to blood testing in the late 70's. I was given that meter free, and always had a replacement free.
I lived for several years in the Netherlands. There they automatically replace the meter every 2 years. It was there that I received my Accu-Chek Mobile meter. That is really great - I love having a cassette of 50 tests in a handly internal package. Just as great is the lancet device that takes a cassette of 6 lancets, in a test drum. This is sealed, so no problem to dispose. As a regular travellor I love the simplicity and convenience of the cassettes.
Of course, as an earlier post indicates, the meter manufacturers are happy to make their meters free. The cost of the test units and lancets are high. I use a cassette of 50 blood tests in just over 8 days, and use a lancet test drum each day - 6 tests a day - so Roche, the manufacturer, makes a handsome profit over the year.
I do not know about accuraccy. I believe the meter has a NULL balance mechanism for preserving the accuracy of readings. The device does not have a menu item to allow calibration - indicating that it does it automatically.
I am sure that my doctor does not worry about the cost. He will be aware that I am checking myself regularly, and that cuts the risk of later problems.
So everyone is happy. I am happy with my easy to use meter. Roche is happy with my regular use of the disponsibles. My doctor is happy to know I am taking care over my condition, and am less of a risk for expensive hospital treatment later.

 

[mikegresty]

I am surprised by this conversation.
I do not think that any company will give out meters that are not accurate, or ones that are only in Beta.
I was on a Urine test kit when diagnosed - way back 1971. But, moved over to blood testing in the late 70's. I was given that meter free, and always had a replacement free.
I lived for several years in the Netherlands. There they automatically replace the meter every 2 years. It was there that I received my Accu-Chek Mobile meter. That is really great - I love having a cassette of 50 tests in a handly internal package. Just as great is the lancet device that takes a cassette of 6 lancets, in a test drum. This is sealed, so no problem to dispose. As a regular travellor I love the simplicity and convenience of the cassettes.
Of course, as an earlier post indicates, the meter manufacturers are happy to make their meters free. The cost of the test units and lancets are high. I use a cassette of 50 blood tests in just over 8 days, and use a lancet test drum each day - 6 tests a day - so Roche, the manufacturer, makes a handsome profit over the year.
I do not know about accuraccy. I believe the meter has a NULL balance mechanism for preserving the accuracy of readings. The device does not have a menu item to allow calibration - indicating that it does it automatically.
I am sure that my doctor does not worry about the cost. He will be aware that I am checking myself regularly, and that cuts the risk of later problems.
So everyone is happy. I am happy with my easy to use meter. Roche is happy with my regular use of the disponsibles. My doctor is happy to know I am taking care over my condition, and am less of a risk for expensive hospital treatment later.

 

[mikegresty]

as a response to all above firstly meters aren't normally advertised as free but a simple call or e mail to the companies in question will get you a free meter and I'm aware of many people personally who have done this. secondly my diabetes nurse explained to me how the hospital is given these meters to be given freely to patients as a kind of trial and test. my meter was advertised on offer at £40 and yet cost me nothing I do over 50 tests per week due to an unusual variant in my diabetes where after a very bad hypo over 20 years ago my diabetes was left uncontrollable both by myself and the hospital after a 3 week stay I cannot use the base insulins and rely completely on novo rapid and regular testing. I've know hypos within half an hour of eating and then requiring over 400 grams of carbohydrate just to stop my sugars falling and have stayed in this position with bloods of 1.1 mmol for hours at a time without stopping eating no one knows why but life is such and my requirement of 100% accurate readings is vital hence a lot of research into meter types and reliability and I for one cannot afford to test / use a meter that may be off by a few mmol in use control solutions are supposed to be available for most meters but have you ever tried obtaining them to do occasional meter tests I've had no luck so far and yet surely every meter should be supplied with such a solution and a simple way to obtain more if only in the interests of reliability and safety

 

[Glen]

I don't think any meter will always be 100% accurate. Do you inject or use a pump with the NovoRapid?

 

[douglas99]

as a response to all above firstly meters aren't normally advertised as free but a simple call or e mail to the companies in question will get you a free meter and I'm aware of many people personally who have done this. secondly my diabetes nurse explained to me how the hospital is given these meters to be given freely to patients as a kind of trial and test. my meter was advertised on offer at £40 and yet cost me nothing I do over 50 tests per week due to an unusual variant in my diabetes where after a very bad hypo over 20 years ago my diabetes was left uncontrollable both by myself and the hospital after a 3 week stay I cannot use the base insulins and rely completely on novo rapid and regular testing. I've know hypos within half an hour of eating and then requiring over 400 grams of carbohydrate just to stop my sugars falling and have stayed in this position with bloods of 1.1 mmol for hours at a time without stopping eating no one knows why but life is such and my requirement of 100% accurate readings is vital hence a lot of research into meter types and reliability and I for one cannot afford to test / use a meter that may be off by a few mmol in use control solutions are supposed to be available for most meters but have you ever tried obtaining them to do occasional meter tests I've had no luck so far and yet surely every meter should be supplied with such a solution and a simple way to obtain more if only in the interests of reliability and safety

I've had the the normal standard meter as issued in their hundreds by the nhs round here, then a replacement model when a new company won the contract.
Well tried and tested models, certainly not samples for trials.
As for control solutions, register on the manufacturers website, they're then free to reorder as required.

 

[mikegresty]

I don't think any meter will always be 100% accurate. Do you inject or use a pump with the NovoRapid?

I inject my control has always been better on a pump as proven on various hospital but after asking about the pumps many times all I've ever been told is to come back in a years time