• Please Remember: Members are only permitted to share their own experiences. Members are not qualified to give medical advice. Additionally, everyone manages their health differently. Please be respectful of other people's opinions about their own diabetes management.
  • We seem to be having technical difficulties with new user accounts. If you are trying to register please check your Spam or Junk folder for your confirmation email. If you still haven't received a confirmation email, please reach out to our support inbox: support.forum@diabetes.org.uk

Tresiba pen help

Status
This thread is now closed. Please contact Anna DUK, Ieva DUK or everydayupsanddowns if you would like it re-opened.
B

beckywyatt82

New Member
Relationship to Diabetes
Carer/Partner
Pronouns
She/Her
My mum has just come home from hospital after suffering a DKA....for 2 nights she hasn't had her tresiba at bed time because the hospital have lost her pen. She's a bit confused and we're not sure what her pen was called. It's not prefilled, she had to put cartridges in it.....the doctor doesn't seem to know what I'm on about.....does anyone here know what this sort of pen is called please?
 
It will have been one of the novopens I think. Was it 1u increments or 0.5u increments?
 
Hi. It is totally shocking that they have sent your mother home without any means of injecting her Tresiba as this puts her at very increased risk of having another DKA. Did the pen dispense whole units or half units? The NovoPen 6 (dispenses whole units) or the NovoPen Echo (dispenses half units.... which is really useful if your Mum takes small doses) Do you know what colour you Mum's pen was?
 
Welcome @beckywyatt82 🙂 Tresiba fits the Novopen. Frankly, get any Novopen you can for now and get her Tresiba going again.
 
Googling the basal. Looks like a Novopen. Please make sure your mum has spare pens. Is there a screw for the needle on the cartridges?
 
They should really have given her a disposable Tresiba pen to come home with so that she had a means of delivering her insulin until she got a new pen.
 
I’d also put in a complaint to the hospital. How could they ‘lose’ her pen? It’s dangerous to others for a start. Moreover, when they couldn’t find it, why didn’t they prescribe a pre-filled pen for her? Shocking.
 
Did she see the diabetes team whilst in and did they give a phone number in case of any issues? They’d be the best people to get in touch with as they may have a spare pen to give her.
 
If your Mum’s other, bolus, fast acting, insulin is also from NovoNordisk (NovoRapid or Fiasp) you should be able to use the same reusable pen as a temporary solution.
This will mean swapping back and forth the two cartridges.

however, I agree with everyone else that she should not have gone home without the Tresiba pen.
 
rebrascora said:
They should really have given her a disposable Tresiba pen to come home with so that she had a means of delivering her insulin until she got a new pen.
Click to expand...
They gave her back her medication and insulin that she took in but the pen was in a black case which didn't come home with her, we've called the hospital and they can't find it and told us to ring out of hours, we've done that so just waiting for a doctor to call back to see if we can get a prescription but I'm not hopeful
 
helli said:
If your Mum’s other, bolus, fast acting, insulin is also from NovoNordisk (NovoRapid or Fiasp) you should be able to use the same reusable pen as a temporary solution.
This will mean swapping back and forth the two cartridges.

however, I agree with everyone else that she should not have gone home without the Tresiba pen.
Click to expand...
Actually a great idea. But keep in mind what insulin is inside the pen when dosing either basal or bolus in the meantime?
 
Inka said:
Either Novopen will do. How’s her blood sugar without the Tresiba? It must be worrying not to be able to take her Tresiba.
Click to expand...
It's all over the place. She takes nova rapid through the day and tresiba at night. She only told me this morning that she didn't come home with her pen
 
Lucyr said:
Did she see the diabetes team whilst in and did they give a phone number in case of any issues? They’d be the best people to get in touch with as they may have a spare pen to give her.
Click to expand...
No, she didn't see anyone, wasn't given any phone numbers, to be honest she had terrible trouble whilst in there trying to get pain meds for her arthritis in her back.....they also left her 1.5 hours in her own faeces after having an accident when they didn't answer her buzzer
 
beckywyatt82 said:
They gave her back her medication and insulin that she took in but the pen was in a black case which didn't come home with her, we've called the hospital and they can't find it and told us to ring out of hours, we've done that so just waiting for a doctor to call back to see if we can get a prescription but I'm not hopeful
Click to expand...
Could try ringing Novo nordisk. They might send a pen or two for free to a customer of their insulin? Worth a punt.
 
beckywyatt82 said:
They gave her back her medication and insulin that she took in but the pen was in a black case which didn't come home with her, we've called the hospital and they can't find it and told us to ring out of hours, we've done that so just waiting for a doctor to call back to see if we can get a prescription but I'm not hopeful
Click to expand...

Insulin would be an emergency prescription so I hope you’d get it. A member here posted the PIP codes (prescription codes) for the Novopens recently if that’s any help. I find GPs don’t always know much about them:

Post in thread 'Oops I’ve gone and done it - wrong insulin'
http://forum.diabetes.org.uk/boards/threads/oops-i’ve-gone-and-done-it-wrong-insulin.110376/post-1323973

These are the most recent pens:

NovoPen 6 Blue 419-6697
NovoPen 6 Grey/Silver 419-6689
NovoPen Echo Plus Blue 419-6663
NovoPen Echo Plus Red 419-6671
 
I very much doubt an emergency pharmacy will have a Novopen in stock but they should be able to dispense a disposable pen containing Tresiba as that is a pretty standard product. You really must make a complaint to the hospital. Sending her home without Tresiba which puts her at risk of DKA when she was admitted for exactly that reason, is totally unacceptable.
 
Inka said:
Insulin would be an emergency prescription so I hope you’d get it. A member here posted the PIP codes (prescription codes) for the Novopens recently if that’s any help. I find GPs don’t always know much about them:

Post in thread 'Oops I’ve gone and done it - wrong insulin'
http://forum.diabetes.org.uk/boards/threads/oops-i’ve-gone-and-done-it-wrong-insulin.110376/post-1323973

These are the most recent pens:

NovoPen 6 Blue 419-6697
NovoPen 6 Grey/Silver 419-6689
NovoPen Echo Plus Blue 419-6663
NovoPen Echo Plus Red 419-6671
Click to expand...
Thank you, that is a great help, although when I'm asking what her pen looked like she keeps saying it was green....
 
Status
This thread is now closed. Please contact Anna DUK, Ieva DUK or everydayupsanddowns if you would like it re-opened.
Back
Top