Your pump model: what you wish you knew.

T1Sherwood

Member
Relationship to Diabetes
Type 1
Hi all!

I've received the amazing news from my hospital team that I will be shifted to pump therapy.

I'm not sure what pump models are available to me. But, I thought it wise to ask other pumpers about what model they have, and if there is anything they wish they'd known about the pump they have at the the they were choosing. Good or bad. I'm interested in anything from customer service quality to quirks of your pump model. I'm hoping I can get some information you'll never be able to read in a pump manual.

Thanks!
 
I have a Dana i pump @T1Sherwood I love it! It’s my second Dana and I’ve found it fabulous. There isn’t really anything I wished I knew beforehand because I did loads of research before choosing this pump.

I’ve been pumping for more than 20 years 🙂
 
My daughter has Tandem T-Slim and that’s been really good. It can be run as a standalone pump, or closed loop with Dexcom G6 or G7. My daughter’s HbA1c was never terrible but it has been consistently in the 40s since she switched to closed loop. Nice touch screen, rechargeable (charges pretty quickly so you can just plug it in when you are in the shower or something as you have to take it off then anyway). The only thing I’d say negative about it is that the refill procedure seems very fiddly compared to the pump she had before (Accu-Chek Combo, which I don’t think is available any more). She took over the refilling when she got this pump though and seems to find it easy enough. She’s just about to get another one!

Try to find out what choices you have ASAP though, you don’t want to read about something on here and think that’s great, I want that one, only to find that your clinic won’t support it! Some clinics give a good choice, others only offer one or two, so make sure you know what’s available. If you’ve never had a pump before you’ll probably end up loving whichever one you get (be prepared for some hard work initially though, it’s very different to injections and isn’t just a magic plug and play tool).
 
Hi @T1Sherwood . Great that you have been offered a pump. It will take some getting used to but well worth it.

You need to find out what pumps your clinic offers. Each hospital offers a limited choice of ones that their DSNs have been trained on, as they need to be able to support. Once you know the choices available in your area you will have access to loads of experience of each on here and can pick our brains for the pros and cons of them.

There are more options becoming available that will work as a Hybrid Closed Loop (HCL) which many find very effective. I would recommend asking which of the ones they offer you can be used in this way. They can all be used as a stand alone pump too, but it is good to have this option available.

I use the Medtronic 780G with the Guardian4 sensors in a closed loop system, which works very well for me and I have chosen to get another one in December when I have to choose again as my 4 years is up. I started a thread for 780 users when a few of us were self funding the loop in the early days. I found it helpful as we shared tips and wrinkles and ways round any issues that arose. Any questions fire away.
 
I don't think there is anything I didn't know before I started on this pump, maybe that the device to control it isn't very hardy and isn't waterpoof either, but thats not a major problem, just have to make sure it is protected.

As others have said, get the list of your options, then do your research. Some manufactures have test/sample pumps which can be useful. Youtube is pretty good to and obviously here. Your team will support you with training etc at the start and mine have been great with support since I started on it.

Good luck with your journey, its exciting and nervous also 🙂
 
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