Where best to start?

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GlasgowGirl

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Type 1
Hello. I'm on the waiting list for an insulin pump and my consultant has referred me to the nursing team who have given me the list of available pumps and asked me to choose one and I'm terrified I make the wrong choice. Can I ask where you all found the information you needed to decide? I'm googling for Scotland and and get the basics but how do I decide which one is best for me? Feeling a bit overwhelmed but excited. I've been type 1 for a long time and don't know anything other than injections.
 
Hi @GlasgowGirl.

I did lots of research before getting a pump - I was offered the Omnipod Dash and the Tslim.
1. I signed up for the “show and tell” sessions for both pumps, which were very useful (my DSN signed me up).
2. I ordered a dummy Omnipod to try out the size and the sticky pad.
3. I used the Tslim’s dummy pump online to practise using its controls.
4. I read every scrap of info on both company’s websites.
5. I watched videos on YouTube of pumpers attaching and using their pumps.
6. I also watched the webinars on the DTN website about pumping, sick day rules, etc etc.
Here’s the link: https://abcd.care/dtn-education/pumps-csii

Good luck!
 
I don't have a pump myself but from what I have read the important thing is to find out which pumps your clinic support/offer. There is usually a limited choice, sometimes very limited ie just 2 options. No point in researching pumps that they don't offer.
Then you need to make a list of the features which are important to you and find which of the offered pumps gives you most of the features you want. What are your sites like? Are you going to be better with a tubed pump which allows you more options for the cannulas than a patch pump? Do you want to operate the pump from your phone. Do you want one that has a hybrid closed loop option and which sensor does it pair with and are you likely to get funding for that sensor or can you afford to self fund if you can't get funding?

There are lots of lots of factors to take into consideration, so making a list of what is important to you is the only way to narrow it down, but your clinic may only have a very limited choice so finding out what is on offer is the first step.
 
GlasgowGirl said:
Hello. I'm on the waiting list for an insulin pump and my consultant has referred me to the nursing team who have given me the list of available pumps and asked me to choose one and I'm terrified I make the wrong choice. Can I ask where you all found the information you needed to decide? I'm googling for Scotland and and get the basics but how do I decide which one is best for me? Feeling a bit overwhelmed but excited. I've been type 1 for a long time and don't know anything other than injections.
Click to expand...

Which pumps are on your clinic’s list @GlasgowGirl ? I’ve used a pump for more than 20 years. I research them by reading their specs on the pump websites; by watching YouTube videos to get a feel for them; and by reading reviews online. I also Google looking for problems and consult my memory to see if I remember any issues with certain pumps that I would wish to avoid. I also speak to my DSN if needed.

If your clinic has, say, six pumps to choose from, then narrow it down to two or three. You can probably do that by eliminating a few. Then, of the two or three you have left, start making detailed charts listing, eg, cartridge/reservoir capacity, giving points for availability of a good number of different sets and cannulas, whether you can control it with your phone, whether it can be looped, etc etc. Circle anything worrying and underline or highlight anything good or special.

Everyone will order their pump preferences in different ways and what’s important is what suits you as an individual. But, do consider whether you’d be tied to one insulin, whether they have a variety of sets and cannulas (cannulas are the weak point in any pump set up and having a variety to choose from makes it a lot more likely you’ll find one that works for you), and insulin capacity, along with details like battery life. Look at things like minimum basal rate per hour. Also, think about your lifestyle.
 
Hi @GlasgowGirl

Many of the pumps have a simulator app where you can get an idea of the size & the menus, controls etc.

If you type insulin pump simulator into the App Store search it should bring up available pumps such as TSlim, Omnipod 5, Ypsomed & I’m sure there’s also Medtronic etc. It’s a good way to find out more, obviously you can’t tell the weight but I found them useful alongside the other information available

Good luck with your pump choice.
 
GlasgowGirl said:
Hello. I'm on the waiting list for an insulin pump and my consultant has referred me to the nursing team who have given me the list of available pumps and asked me to choose one and I'm terrified I make the wrong choice. Can I ask where you all found the information you needed to decide? I'm googling for Scotland and and get the basics but how do I decide which one is best for me? Feeling a bit overwhelmed but excited. I've been type 1 for a long time and don't know anything other than injections.
Click to expand...
Hi .

If you want information about Hybrid Closed Loop ( might be an option available to you) it's also worth checking

https://abcd.care/dtn-education/hybrid-closed-loops .
And your team should be able to advise which pumps might not be suitable eg due to your insulin requirements etc.

Good luck with your pump journey
 
I’m can’t add to what others have already said as it’s already great advice.
I had the list from my team there where 6ish actually but we started with the t slim and Omnipod.
Once I started to look into it I knew I would prefer a patched pump for my lifestyle and both my DSN and consultant agreed.

I remember feeling how you are now after 17 years MDI going to a pump was scary but it’s been the best change in my diabetics management ever and I wish I’d been able to do it sooner.

Good luck and we at here for questions
 
GlasgowGirl said:
Thanks so much @Bloden. I've added show and tell sessions to my list of questions for the team.
Click to expand...

I think you’ll have a pretty good intuition of things which feel right for you (even if that’s something as relatively unimportant as what it actually looks like).

There will be other things like tubed/thbeless, sensor integration, and/or remote handset/phone app, that you might instinctively lean towards (or away from!)

The great news is that as a first pump, there really isn’t a bad choice. All the really big differences/benefits (accuracy of doses, flexible 24hr basal profile, temporary insulin suspension, always having insulin available for meals snacks, dual/combo bolus options, precise dose calculation etc etc) are offered by all of them. In a sense, the other things are just a bit of window dressing. There’s plenty to get stuck into without getting distracted by the few minor differences 🙂
 
So good to hear that you are on the list for a pump.

As others have said do your research, but I am confident that whichever one you choose, in the first four years you will be seeing greater flexibility in adapting your basal insulin to suit your needs hour by hour and different ways of delivering your bolus insulin that you the time will fly by.

I have used a Hybrid Closed Loop for nearly three years, and that has been another big step up in my management (with a lot less work), so it would be worth considering a pump that could be looped, although they all work in manual mode too.

Let us know how you get on.
 
SB2015 said:
So good to hear that you are on the list for a pump.

As others have said do your research, but I am confident that whichever one you choose, in the first four years you will be seeing greater flexibility in adapting your basal insulin to suit your needs hour by hour and different ways of delivering your bolus insulin that you the time will fly by.

I have used a Hybrid Closed Loop for nearly three years, and that has been another big step up in my management (with a lot less work), so it would be worth considering a pump that could be looped, although they all work in manual mode too.

Let us know how you get on.
Click to expand...
Yes I would have taken loop over any other option, wasn’t an option for me at the time.
 
Thanks so much everyone for all your help. I think I'm between tslim and medtrum. I've got appointments next week with both reps and lots of questions to ask them. So appreciate the help and I'll let you know which one I go for.

Now to figure out the waiting list times and how it works. So many variables!
 
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