Libre Scoreboard - Pending delivery - 6 sensors, 2 'goodwill' replacements and one Optium test kit..

[RFSMarch]

After a frankly pretty miserable time with my latest sensor - an apparent continued allergy this time through Cavillon barrier spray, consistently low readings which resulted in the rep finally deciding that rather than having me buy an Accuchek Performa nano for travel/emergencies, he would send me the Optium free of charge seeing as they prefer to have you check with their own strips ...

Then a lovely call in response to a written letter of complaint covering short expiry dates, lack of adhesive and skin protection advice, and of course the ever present delivery woes at the moment... I was given a goodwill replacement for a sensor that died when I was overseas, also to be sent to me next week when I was home...

I was filled with marginal optimism that this miserable little beastie currently burning my arm had revived enough to give semi-normal readings. Fine up until I went to breakfast - now just stuck on LO, and pinching like a right mardy lobster!

So I called again... getting a second replacement sensor, along with my pending order for 6 sensors, and the optium. While this is a decent response to two months of continual pain and grief after not a smidgeon of trouble for the first four sensors, this is an example of how Abbotts are perhaps victims of their own success (i.e. not enough control over their French warehouse, terrible stock rotation)

The one good thing is they cheerfully assured me that the dates are going to be all fine as my one last spare is... (sigh)... Nov 2017 so I think I need to fast-path the compeed solution to my list of things to try.

The most positive thing from the call with their Customer Service manager though was that she was open to perhaps having a constructive channel for dialogue. A couple of us from the FB group I belong to have now been contacted directly by Abbotts to address a number of concerns we have formally sent to them in writing, and their tone has been conciliatory so they want to improve - which I do think is a step in the right direction.

 

[EllieM]

After a frankly pretty miserable time with my latest sensor - an apparent continued allergy this time through Cavillon barrier spray, consistently low readings which resulted in the rep finally deciding that rather than having me buy an Accuchek Performa nano for travel/emergencies, he would send me the Optium free of charge seeing as they prefer to have you check with their own strips ...

Then a lovely call in response to a written letter of complaint covering short expiry dates, lack of adhesive and skin protection advice, and of course the ever present delivery woes at the moment... I was given a goodwill replacement for a sensor that died when I was overseas, also to be sent to me next week when I was home...

I was filled with marginal optimism that this miserable little beastie currently burning my arm had revived enough to give semi-normal readings. Fine up until I went to breakfast - now just stuck on LO, and pinching like a right mardy lobster!

So I called again... getting a second replacement sensor, along with my pending order for 6 sensors, and the optium. While this is a decent response to two months of continual pain and grief after not a smidgeon of trouble for the first four sensors, this is an example of how Abbotts are perhaps victims of their own success (i.e. not enough control over their French warehouse, terrible stock rotation)

The one good thing is they cheerfully assured me that the dates are going to be all fine as my one last spare is... (sigh)... Nov 2017 so I think I need to fast-path the compeed solution to my list of things to try.

The most positive thing from the call with their Customer Service manager though was that she was open to perhaps having a constructive channel for dialogue. A couple of us from the FB group I belong to have now been contacted directly by Abbotts to address a number of concerns we have formally sent to them in writing, and their tone has been conciliatory so they want to improve - which I do think is a step in the right direction.

Thanks for posting this, this sounds very close to my experience. I've been using the libre since June 2016 (when it first became available in Australia), and the first 6 to 8 months were fantastic, readings matched very well with blood tests.

Then I started to get an allergic reaction to the sensors, which I can put up with, but for the last 4 months I've had issues with drastically low readings (ie reading of LO when my blood sugar is anywhere between 5 and 7). Abbott have been sending me replacement sensors and (most recently) a new reader. So, of my last 6 sensors I've had

4 read so low as to be unuseable
1 give me reasonable results after 3 days (till a little low but only by about 10% to 20%))
most recent (new meter) starts to give me useable results (eg sensor 2.7 when bs is 4.6, sensor LO when bs is 3.7), but only after 3 days of application.

So I'm now facing -
at least 3 days of application before I can activate the meter (which means more time for the allergy to develop).
no clue as to whether it's a sensor problem (has their quality control got that bad?) or a fundamental issue to do with a T1 diabetic's compromised immune system.

Abbott assure me that I'm the only one with these issues, which I find hard to believe..... I would love to know if anyone else has had similar problems and been able to make the libre work for them again.