• Guest - w'd love to know what you think about the forum! Take the 2025 Survey »

Getting a pump at last.

Julian_Hands

Well-Known Member
Messages
69
Location
Ammanford, South Wales
Type of diabetes
Type 1
Treatment type
Non-insulin injectable medication (incretin mimetics)
Just a quick note to you all that you do need to persevere with your hospital sometimes.
I was advised in August 2016 that the hospital agreed that Pump therapy was the best treatment for my circumstance and could see that I was doing all I can with 10-12 blood tests day to try to manage my injections but agreed that I should change ASAP to get my SD allot better.
I was invited and attended a carb counting course in October 2016 where I was asked if I would like an Accuchek Aviva Expert Meter to give Bolus advise, which would help with my transition to a pump. I accepted the meter and purchased the Insight software to monitor what was going on.
I then received a letter from the hospital to advise that my next appointment would be the 20th March 2017, this annoyed me as I have been really struggling with the injections after 42 years and with new life routines that didn't allow for such great control. I phoned the hospital in October to get advised that this was the earliest they would see me?

I attended the hospital today and started my rant that I wanted to change to a pump and wasn't prepared to wait another 6 months with NHS cutbacks, when the doctor apologised and could see that I slipped through the net. I should of been on a pump in November and todays appointment was to see how things were going on with a pump?

I hope now to be seen in the next 2 weeks to make the change.

I hope you all have a smoother experience making the change and hope that the pump will give me the flexibility I've been long awaiting for.

Good luck to you all.

Julian
 
My change in the UK took a while, but it is the best thing that happened since I was diagnosed aged 11 - I went onto the pump about 9 years ago and moved to France 5 years ago. What a difference here........ I now have a French pump, changed last year as it went wrong and became difficult to read, new one couriered with 24 hours. The pump is superb and now my HbA1C has gone from 11.4+ in UK to 7.6 which after 55 years is considered excellent. It will take tie to adjust and get the best out of, but welcome to the pump users group......

Here continuous blood glucose monitoring is available at a price but is gradually being rolled out and will eventually be covered under the ALD regs (ALD= Ailment Longue Duration and is equivalent to exemptions in UK but is more targeted).
 

The doctor discussed pumps that I agreed were good but were designed around CGM which isn't supported by the NHS. This got her squirming a bit. Unfortunately I'm unable to afford CGM so looking at Accucheck Insight or Cellnovo.
 
good luck and fingers crossed
 
As I said, it takes time to be able to get the maximum benefit, sadly some things remain unavailable even now years down the line - the linked computer programme does not function and even after contact direct with the manufacturers I am nowhere near resolving that issue, I simply get told "there is a programming fault and it is not available yet" which I suspect is a standard reply meaning nothing is being done......
 
Strange you were offered a pump before having attended any carb counting/dose adjustment training....

where are you based?
 
novorapidboi26 said:
Strange you were offered a pump before having attended any carb counting/dose adjustment training....

where are you based?
Click to expand...

often its a tick box exercise, I taught myself to carb count well before DAFNE but still had to attend to get my pump 5 days out of my life I'll never get back... :/
 
I had to go on a carb counting course prior to getting my pump. I had been counting for over ten years and learnt very little.
I understand now how much dedication to carb counting and watching trends is necessary when pumping. It's all very well NICE coming up with medical conditions for a pump but if you are not willing (or able) to put the effort in, it is a waste of money.
What I am trying to say is that I didn't just see the carb counting course as a course to learn to count carbs; it was also an opportunity for my local HCP to determine who was mentally ready for a pump. Maybe they could have done that in less time but then that wouldn't show as much dedication.
 
Engineer88 said:
often its a tick box exercise, I taught myself to carb count well before DAFNE but still had to attend to get my pump 5 days out of my life I'll never get back... :/
Click to expand...

Were you a competent dose adjuster before DAFNE came along though....
 
Engineer88 said:
yes hence thinking it was a waste of time!

Not exactly difficult is it!
Click to expand...

So was that a DAFNE pump course @Engineer88 ? I didn't know that there was two courses, one for pump users and one for those on MDI.
 
Last edited:
noblehead said:
So was that a DAFNE pump course @Engineer88 ? I didn't know that there was two courses, one for pump users and one for those on MDI.
Click to expand...
No @noblehead only bog standard DAFNE but Northampton wouldn't accept I could carb count without having done the course and therefore held it as a hoop to jump before I got one
 
Engineer88 said:
No @noblehead only bog standard DAFNE but Northampton wouldn't accept I could carb count without having done the course and therefore held it as a hoop to jump before I got one
Click to expand...

Right thanks @Engineer88 I too had only done the standard DAFNE course (around 5 years before going on a pump) but was curious if anyone had actually completed the pump training course.
 
novorapidboi26 said:
Strange you were offered a pump before having attended any carb counting/dose adjustment training....

where are you based?
Click to expand...
I had the carb course in October 2016 where I received the Aviva Expert Meter which has been a great tool (with a few quirks) and was expecting to go onto the pump before Xmas, but I only received a letter to advise the appointment to see the consultant on the 20th March 2017, this was very disheartening at the time.
I've just received a call from the Hospital and have been given the date of the 3rd April to make the change.

Can't wait and fairly confident this will be a huge assistance in allowing me to enjoy more my sports and control the diabetes with much greater certainty than the current MDI regime with Lantus.
 
Engineer88 said:
yes hence thinking it was a waste of time!

Not exactly difficult is it!
Click to expand...

It isn't no....

without being shown the way I would have never of made any effort to work out how it all works on my own.....I suppose this was because I was 15 when diagnosed and laziness was my top priority.........and was on a mixed insulin right up till about a year before DAFNE...
 

I think this just shows that the one size fits all blanket approach shouldn't be employed with diabetes. I had worked it out myself mostly out of frustration at getting no help and entirely being blamed for my poor control (it couldn't be called control!). Even employing every DAFNE tactic and then some and using a pump and CGM my D is bloody hard work
 
My hospital did exactly the same @Julian_Hands
They sent me the follow up prompt letter with the consultant before I'd actually started! I phoned up and went through a right old rigmarole!
Me:' I've received a letter asking me to make an appointment within 7 days.
Receptionist: I can't book an appointment for you, you're not due until July 2017, it's too far in advance.
Me: that's the follow up appointment, I haven't actually started pump therapy yet nor had an appointment
Receptionist: I can't book you your pump appointment.
Me: that's ok, but the letter says I'll be removed from the list if I don't make an appointment.
Receptionist ' I guarantee that won't happen

7 days later: 'you have not responded to our letter asking you to be booked in to see your consultant, we presume you no longer want to access our services and have removed you from our list.'

Me'

It all came good in the end as you know from my other thread, I started yesterday. Whether I'm still in the system for a consultant follow up in July, who knows? But I have my pump
 
Ive just seen on You Tube a great thread: 'TuDiabetes Live interview with Simon Carter, PredictBGL' and have downloaded the App. Has anyone got any experience of this App as it does look quite nice for predictive Boluses and getting a better understanding of trends?
It may also be more hassle than its worth, but curious if its worth looking to adopt once I start on the Pump next week?
 
Wow before I went on the pump last year I had to go through everything. Carb counting course then DAFNE (which honestly I had to push to get on) and then a pump course. It was very good. Hats off to the harrogate team.

I know from people who attended the courses with me that some transferred to harrogate from other districts because they weren't happy with the care of their own districts x
 
Julian, I've used predict BGL. It's okay, but used to frustrate me as even after a couple of weeks of tests, the predictions weren't all that good. That was some time back though, so it may be better now.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Menu
Log in
Register
Cookies are required to use this site. You must accept them to continue using the site. Learn More.…