Pumps versus MDI costs

[Northerner]

I was intrigued by the stress on funding considerations when a PCT decides whether a person can have a pump or not, so I just did a little investigation. Apparently, pumps cost about ?2000-?2500 and last about 5 years, with additional costs of cannulas etc. coming to about ?1000 a year.

In comparison, I'd guess that MDI is around ?300-?500 a year (needles, pens). You'd still need to test, of course, so I'd assume those costs are the same for both options.

So, really, you're talking about roughly three times as much to run a pump, per year, including the cost of the pump spread over 5 years. But, if that means improved control and better quality of life then I think it must be a small price to pay. When you consider the potential costs of treatment for complications, it really ought to be viewed as an economically very sensible and logical option!🙂

 

[Adrienne]

Hi Northerner

You are exactly right. The idea of pumps is to get the control now and get good control. I have friends with children on pumps, some have HbA1c's of 5.6 or 6.0 and this is NOT due to lots of hypos, hardly any infact. It is just very very good control.

Getting this good control does indeed mean less money the PCT's or government have to pay out in future years. The problem is that PCT budgets only run about 3 yearly so they don't look into the future which is not good for pumpers.

Ultimately PCT's will save a lot of money but they need to stump it up now to achieve this.

Before people start thinking pumping is magic, it isn't. It is a lot of hard work. It still means tests and lots of them to make sure you are getting all the components to pumping right.

Personally at the moment, there is nothing that can beat pumping for a type 1diabetic, it is the nearest thing to a pancreas!

Adrienne 🙂

 

[Freddie99]

Hmmm interesting, everything is starting to sway me in favour of a pump I think. I will have to do some research though prior to making a final decision I think...

Tom H