Please, Sister, can I have the pump??

[judi t]

About a month ago, I met my new endocrinologist. (I'd been seeing my previous endo. for 26 years. He was brilliant for me, but unfortunately, he retired.) So, off to new endo who I immediately click with. She's very enthusiastic about pumping and encourages me to give it a try. So I spend an agonising month doing my research on line. I decide to go for a pump, reasoning that I have nothing to lose, and if it doesn't suit, I can easily revert to my MDI.

Here's the rub. The diabetes educator was the most negative, obstructionist personality I have ever encountered. So, the bright young endo is sending people off to deal with this difficult decision, to learn what they need to know, and they meet the health 'professional' from the dark side!

I was aghast at a couple of her comments.
Me, on the phone. First contact. "I'm considering using an insulin pump."
Her, in a flat-line tone: "It won't cure your diabetes." Well, hello, I think, having been on MDI and about ten finger pricks a day for 26 years.
Later, on the phone, me, having decided not to hang up: "Look, I don't want to go on the pump for the sake of an extra five years in the nursing home, I just thought it might improve the quality of my life now."
Her: "Well, if you have a stroke you'll be in a nursing home anyway." Me, thinking, where does this, dare I say, ***** get off?

Anyway, I mentioned it to my lovely endo who assured me that she wasn't normally like this. So I booked the appointment.

Today, I met the woman. She was negative, humourless and downright obstructive, just as I surmised she would be from our phone call. And I didn't go in looking for this. I was enthusiastic about getting into the pumping.

She had four pumps activated in front of her. When they buzzed or bleeped occasionally, she smacked her lips with impatience and finally, she removed all the batteries and flung them aside. "Imagine how annoying it would be wearing one," I suggested. "It won't happen when you're wearing one," she countered, crossly.

She seemed to be actively discouraging me from taking the plunge with the pump. How did I get her to concede that it might be a good idea for me?

Me: "Look. If you had diabetes, do you think you'd give it a try?"
Her, reluctantly: "Well, yes, I would."
Me: "Good. I'd like to go with the Animas." (Purely because I could read the screen better with my old eyes.)
Her: "All right then. I'll get the paper work."
Me, later: "How long will I have to wait now before I can go on the pump?"
Her: "It'll be a month. There are people who've been on the waiting list for much longer than you have."

Another hello, derr moment.

And I could go on. Needless to say, I rang the endo and apprised her of the situation.
Me: "Hi. I've worked out what's going to be the biggest problem for me with pumping."
Her: "Yeah? What's that?"
Me: "The diabetes educator."

[CrazyGramma]

Hi Judi T

Try not to fret, looks like all that is standing in the way of your joining the wonderful world of pumping is your crackers diabetes educator! Who is paying her salary?

[ant hill]

I would get the endo to get another diabetic nurse as I think that the nurse that you have is not liking the job and so the enthusiasm is not there.
I think that the best diabetic nurse is a diabetic themseves. :)

[notme]

Judi, don't let this educator ruin it for you. I had an endo that I really disliked, but I knew he would give me what I wanted, a pump. I stuck with him until I had my pump and it was hooked up and then I immediately changed.

Go through the motions, get your pump and then find a new educator. Much easier that way.

[RobiJo]

Wow. I can't believe someone in the medical profession could be so rude!!!! Oh wait, that is not the only one. Errr. That's irritating. Just tell her want she wants to know and ask your pumping questions here.

[Scrabblechick]

Here's hoping no one pees in her Post Toasties the next time you have to see her! LOL. Seriously, good luck in getting your pump!

[xMenace]

Me: "Hi. I've worked out what's going to be the biggest problem for me with pumping."
Her: "Yeah? What's that?"
Me: "The diabetes educator."

I totally agree with this. People who don't have capable and enthusiastic DE's and who can't find good resources elsewhere, might as well stick to MDI.

Mine was nice enough and enthusiastic, but the knob on her office door had more smarts :stupido3:

[judi t]

I have to say I just LOVE this site, and can't believe I've only just discovered it since deciding to go on the pump. It's good to have a place to vent about diabetes to people who understand.

My lovely endo is already sussing the situation with the DE from the dark side and will probably link me up to another educator.

Cheers.

[pegasus]

I have to say I just LOVE this site, and can't believe I've only just discovered it since deciding to go on the pump. It's good to have a place to vent about diabetes to people who understand.

My lovely endo is already sussing the situation with the DE from the dark side and will probably link me up to another educator.

Cheers.

I had a similar experience--that is, finding this site after deciding to go on the pump! It's been outstanding!

As for the educator, well, mine was knowledgeable but obsessed with how tight her schedule is and how much more money she could make in her private practice; she initially promised me 3 hours on the first visit, then gave me 2 (without advance warning, as if my time wasn't equally valuable), because the company policy changed and she'd have to do paperwork to get paid for the extra hour. Said she got "3 hours of information in 2." Hah! I found a DE who can defy time! I told endo, who was disappointed that she was preventing access this way.

She gave me the very bare bones, and I'm working with the info I get *here* to figure things out myself. :top: :wink: Slow, but better, I think; it will sink in more deeply into how I function.

[Subby]

I'm having problems with my "pump" team. I feel I've given them several chances. I've just had three months of carefully tested basal rates changed from 12 rates providing a rather curvey basal picture that I seem to need, back to 4 on the spot "because most diabetics don't need more", then suffering the worst hypos and swings in months and losing all the progress I have made. To "stick" with them, its an exhausting, fruitless prospect of a huge battle to try and "compromise" (I'd be happy to try 6 or 8) back into a more complex basal rate picture (which works much better for me but is much less convenient for the drs to tweak in their 10 second analyses). To stick with them is also to face the continuing attitude of being treated a borderline non compliant/problem patient in the process because I RESEARCH and make some very careful decisions for myself - with these problems and more, I can say that:

you need positive, progressive, responsive help that also empowers your relationship with your pump, whether educator or pump endo. Anything else is going to waste your time and cause you grief. You are obviously not a moron and you should not be treated like one nor have to battle blatant negativity either.

I agree if they have something you need consider sticking it out until you get it as sugested, but otherwise move on. Good luck with your quest. I'm off on it myself.

[CrazyGramma]

Subby,

I don't understand....if you didnt agree with your team why did you make the changes that they suggested - you are part of the team. I understand the hard work involved in basal testing as I am working on my own exotic rate pattern. I am sorry if it sounds like an odd question but I dont always do what I'm told!

[Holly]

"Well, if you have a stroke you'll be in a nursing home anyway."
Fortunately not always true

[Subby]

CrazyGramma, not a strange question at all: and first of let me say I absolutely don't do what I am told all the time either. In this case the reason I changed my basals as "passed down" to me was because whenever I asked for a compromise or to be considered part of the team, whenever I tried to say "can we have more of a curve here", the doctor's attitude would change to "we are listening, but in the end I know best"... and it was clear he would not tolerate more than 4 basal rates. Over and over again.

A pretty daft, rigid approach there, yes? (well that's what I think). Now I could have walked out (or just thumbed my nose and said "I'm sticking with my basals... effectively the same thing here)... but I really wanted the CGMS test they had just hooked me up to. (It's the only chance I get at a stint of CGMS, through the educator). So I chose not to kick up a fuss, changed my basal rates for the time being as it was part of the contract of "compliance", and found out the next few days how much 4 rates compared to more really really suck in my case. And had a very clear illustration that with the clear discrepancy between what I know I need and what limits the dr/educator are confined to, there is no future in the relationship.

Obvious, yes, but just another tale how getting stuck with the wrong help, is just grief all over.

[CrazyGramma]

Goodness! I certainly understand now. I don't think it's fair but we gatta do what we gatta do sometimes.

[Mich]

Well, I love my endo and my CDE, but guess what? When it came to the pump, they both knew I could figure it out. I had been diabetic twice as long as my CDE so I got an extremely short run-through for my pump setup session.

We breezed through the list and checked things off. I put on my set for the first time, she left and there I was, a pumper. Well, the human brain isn't designed to absorb that much information at once. My head was spinning.:eek:

But...
My pump came with a CD, a manual the size of the LA City phone book, and an 800 number. AND I had found this site about a week earlier, thank goodness.

My opinion is: play the game, get your pump and teach yourself. That's the way diabetes really goes anyway. You learn what you need as it comes up (and ask the rest on this forum.)

Congrats on your decision, Judi. See you on the forum.

Mich

[judi t]

I'm freaking out a bit at what you're going through, Subby. And I notice you're from Melbourne. Wouldn't it be ironic if you are also dealing with the Diabetes Educator from the Dark Side!

I've decided I'm definitely changing my DE. When I visited her last Friday, I'd forgotten to ask for a medical certificate. I left a message on her answering service asking if she could post one out to me. Well, she did. On the Certificate of Attendance she made the remark that I'd attended the clinic between 8 and 9.30 am! I've been visiting an endo at that same hospital for 26 years and he's never specified the number of minutes I've been there. She was evidently trying to deny me my morning off! What a horror. There's no way I'm working with her. She's going to be obstreperous at every opportunity. She'd be likely to set my basal rates too low - or whatever - to give me a big hypo in the middle of the night to teach me a lesson!!

Why do these people go into the caring profession??

[Subby]

Ouch... yep, move on, and pretty please PM me if you find a caring, progressive, inclusive educator/team in Melb (and I will do the same). I don't know if that DE is the same as mine, but our endos sure sound similar. Good luck.

On another note on this theme, the other day I was picking up some strips from a chemist, and a guy who was obviously facing his demons and getting a tester and strips for the first time in something like 5 years, was faced with a DE (or maybe a pharmacy assistant) who I felt like going and hitting. She was filling out a form at the desk:

her: "So how many times a day do you test?"
him: "oh, I havn't tested in years" (really embarrassed)
her: "you naughty boy" (in a tsk tsk gee you should know better tone and this guy is about 38 by the way)
him: "Well.... that's what I'm here for" (getting red faced and defensive)
her: "so how many times a week? Oh, no, that's right, not for years hey? (laughs loudly AT him) You know you should be doing it every day? What am I supposed to write on this form? Are we meant to think you are going to just start testing all of a sudden?" (In a really nasty "yeah right, that'll be the day" tone)

By this stage I could feel his thinking had changed to a bewildered "D this attitude, D my diabetes, D the whole blasted thing"... and I knew exactly how he felt, especially faced with nasty, blinkered hostility like that. I had to walk out to stop myself sticking my nose in, so I've got no idea what happened from there (probably downhill).

I was wondering exactly the same question as you Judi, Why are these people working in that industry?

[judi t]

Hi
I had a similar experience with some jumped up little serving girl in my local chemist. Normally I send my husband into town to pick up my gear, but seeing as all these local agencies had sprung up, I thought I'd take advantage. So there I was, with this seventeen year old - or thereabouts - with her fake nails - not that there's anything wrong with that! _ asking me how many times I tested. I thought it was an impertinent question but I told her that I tested seven to ten times a day. "That's a lot," she says. "Sorry?" I said. "Do you actually have diabetes?" No she replies. "Then how do you know whether that's a lot or not??" She told me that most people didn't do that many tests. I've never been back there. It's worth the trip into town to get my supplies and not be served by an ignoramus with 'a little knowledge'.