[Lynne1]

The event organization and presentation was sorely lacking. First of all, there were no signs to direct people to the event and it was held in a deserted medical building. People were walking around trying to find it. There was no presentation..just informal question and answer session and discussion about pumping. The rep only brought the grey pump and no infusions sets. What was she thinking?

She also tried to "spin" design flaws as features. My friend took the battery out of the pump and put it back in. The pump tried to reject the battery...the battery was finally accepted but the pump would only deliver basal...no bolus dosing was allowed. She also made it sound like the Guardian was working well and almost ready for prime time...which we know it's not. She also said that you can't transfer manually entered bg from the pump to the webpage. What good is that? What if you don't like the meter?

Anyhow, I wasn't very impressed and am leaning towards the Cozmo more than ever. Now to get the ok from my doctor. Oh, yeah...get the Cozmo rep to send me some CLEO's!

Thanks for all of your advice and info. It really helped me know when I was getting a load of bs from the rep. Ha! Ha!

[middnite03]

Originally Posted by Lynne1

She also said that you can't transfer manually entered bg from the pump to the webpage. What good is that? What if you don't like the meter?

actually if you dont like the meter the web site is set up so you can upload a gfew different kinds of meters, I do my freestyle all the time,. and ummm well when I input my bs into the pump, then upload it to the site, it does have the bs readings in the reports.... i think she may need to do a litlte learning about her product first. as for the battery thing,. if it is not a fully charged, fresh battery, then yes you will get an error. thats why the instructions say" use only fresh, new batteries". if you pull a battery thats bee in for a week, with only 3 bars left, then of course when you try to pu that in again, it will alarm and error out when it does it's battery check. thats why it will error, it's checking for a fully charged fresh new battery.... I have a mm 715 for 10 months now, not 1 error, not 1 blockage warning, the only probalem I do have to the crappy meter they include, but you do not have to use it, and it saves you 2 seconds by not having you input your blood yourself. for the freedon, and great numbers I have seen since I started the pump, i prase minimed, especially when I call, and no matter what they are there to help me, and understanding all the time.

[spike]

Originally Posted by Lynne1

The event organization and presentation was sorely lacking. First of all, there were no signs to direct people to the event and it was held in a deserted medical building. People were walking around trying to find it. There was no presentation..just informal question and answer session and discussion about pumping. The rep only brought the grey pump and no infusions sets. What was she thinking?

She also tried to "spin" design flaws as features. My friend took the battery out of the pump and put it back in. The pump tried to reject the battery...the battery was finally accepted but the pump would only deliver basal...no bolus dosing was allowed. She also made it sound like the Guardian was working well and almost ready for prime time...which we know it's not. She also said that you can't transfer manually entered bg from the pump to the webpage. What good is that? What if you don't like the meter?

Anyhow, I wasn't very impressed and am leaning towards the Cozmo more than ever. Now to get the ok from my doctor. Oh, yeah...get the Cozmo rep to send me some CLEO's!

Thanks for all of your advice and info. It really helped me know when I was getting a load of bs from the rep. Ha! Ha!

a partially discharged battery should not be inserted into the pump, anyway. who is going to remove a functional battery and then re-insert it again? that's just horsing around. only a fresh battery should be installed. so the design MAKES SENSE.

It's a shame that you weren't happy with the presentation you attended. The pumps are fine, but sometimes their organization leaves something to be desired. <g>

[Harold]

Originally Posted by spike

a partially discharged battery should not be inserted into the pump, anyway. who is going to remove a functional battery and then re-insert it again? that's just horsing around. only a fresh battery should be installed. so the design MAKES SENSE.

If it can happen it will.
Don't know how many times I have dropped something and had the battery cover come off and the battery leave the unit.

[Cinnabon]

Sorry you had such a bad experience at MM. Here in Miami they have their own suite in the Citibank building. The rep usually brings refeshments adn snacks. The hold a lot of different meetings all the time, pump skills, carb counting, advanced pump. I really hope you feel better with Cozmo. Let us know how it goes....

[Carwy]

I believe that pumps -medical equipment- should accept whatever battery is installed in it as long as it has power and is the same kind of voltage - like a AA or AAA battery. This comes from my technical experience. In my opinion it is a design flaw.

[Dewey]

Originally Posted by Lynne1

The event organization and presentation was sorely lacking. First of all, there were no signs to direct people to the event and it was held in a deserted medical building. People were walking around trying to find it. There was no presentation..just informal question and answer session and discussion about pumping. The rep only brought the grey pump and no infusions sets. What was she thinking?

She also tried to "spin" design flaws as features. My friend took the battery out of the pump and put it back in. The pump tried to reject the battery...the battery was finally accepted but the pump would only deliver basal...no bolus dosing was allowed. She also made it sound like the Guardian was working well and almost ready for prime time...which we know it's not. She also said that you can't transfer manually entered bg from the pump to the webpage. What good is that? What if you don't like the meter?

Anyhow, I wasn't very impressed and am leaning towards the Cozmo more than ever. Now to get the ok from my doctor. Oh, yeah...get the Cozmo rep to send me some CLEO's!

Thanks for all of your advice and info. It really helped me know when I was getting a load of bs from the rep. Ha! Ha!

Hi Lynne,

Sorry to hear you had trouble at the event. I agree that the battery issue sounds like a design flaw. I'm not trying to slam Minimed...after all, I started with their 506 in '96 and used their pumps until 2003. That said, this battery thing has been an ongoing & morphing issue that started with the 511 models. When I had the 511, I kept getting battery errors, and my 512 would only last (at best) 3 weeks on a brand new one. Although the newer models have better life, they still should accept used batteries in the event users don't have new ones in the immediate area. I now have two pumps that can each accept used batteries if new ones are not available.

Regardless of what company you go with, there will be pros/cons, good & bad and people who are ecstatic or extremely dissatisfied (or somewhere in between). The best bet is to go with your heart and feelings. If you do that, you can't go wrong.

[JediSkipdogg]

Originally Posted by Carwy

I believe that pumps -medical equipment- should accept whatever battery is installed in it as long as it has power and is the same kind of voltage - like a AA or AAA battery. This comes from my technical experience. In my opinion it is a design flaw.

I second that. One time I ran out of a battery on my IR 1200 pump and just had a regular AA in a flashlight. I knew it would take some time for batteries to come in the mail (free that way) so I just took it out of the flashlight and put it in the pump for a week. The pump worked and it said it had 2 of the 3 bars left. So I personally agree with Carwy in that any battery should work and if not then it should be a design flaw. Also, how come Animas is the only pump that has really a true long lasting power? I can get 6 months out of one battery quite easily, yet there are others that won't last 1 month?

[Diana]

I agree that the pump shoud be able to take a partially used battery. I sometimes like to switch between pumping and shots, and when I do this I often take the battery out of my pump to avoid getting all types of alarms. It just seems silly for the pump not to accept partially used batteries.

[Lynne1]

Thanks for your input everyone!

The battery "feature" is really not a problem for me, but my friend is considering a pump for her type 1 daughter who is 5 and is concerned that her daughter will take the battery out accidentally while "playing" with the pump. The battery is very easy to remove.

Guess what? I spoke to my endo and asked him why he doesn't recommend the cozmo. He said that he doesn't work with that company so he can't tell me anything about it. However, he said he uses the minimeds 3 day blood glucose monitoring tool frequently in his practice and it is wonderful. That doesn't mean the implantable devise will be ready for market and covered by insurance any time soon, but he thinks minimed is the current leader in research and technology. He pointed out that if I go with the cozmo and minimed comes out with the implanted bg monitor I'd have to pay for that in addition to the cozmo. If I went with the minimed I may be able to upgrade through the pathways program. I also found out that my insurance covers 1 pump until the pump breaks or they get a letter of medical necessity for a new pump. That means I'd have a better chance to upgrade going with the minimed. Decisions, Decisions!

I really like some of the cozmos features...not sure if the features outweigh the upgrade advantage...probably not!

Hmmm? Still thinking...

[spike]

Originally Posted by Lynne1

Thanks for your input everyone!

The battery "feature" is really not a problem for me, but my friend is considering a pump for her type 1 daughter who is 5 and is concerned that her daughter will take the battery out accidentally while "playing" with the pump. The battery is very easy to remove.

Guess what? I spoke to my endo and asked him why he doesn't recommend the cozmo. He said that he doesn't work with that company so he can't tell me anything about it. However, he said he uses the minimeds 3 day blood glucose monitoring tool frequently in his practice and it is wonderful. That doesn't mean the implantable devise will be ready for market and covered by insurance any time soon, but he thinks minimed is the current leader in research and technology. He pointed out that if I go with the cozmo and minimed comes out with the implanted bg monitor I'd have to pay for that in addition to the cozmo. If I went with the minimed I may be able to upgrade through the pathways program. I also found out that my insurance covers 1 pump until the pump breaks or they get a letter of medical necessity for a new pump. That means I'd have a better chance to upgrade going with the minimed. Decisions, Decisions!

I really like some of the cozmos features...not sure if the features outweigh the upgrade advantage...probably not!

Hmmm? Still thinking...

My doc won't prescribe any pump he isn't familar with, either. that has been the subject of a heated discussion on this forum, BTW. I side with the doc; if I was a doctor and was pressured by a patient to prescribe something I couldn't support, I'd explain to them the reasoning behind that sound medical decision. think about it--would you want your doctor to put you on a pump he didn't know inside and out? all of my last 3 pumping endos have known the MM pumps like the back of their hands.

[Lynne1]

Originally Posted by spike

My doc won't prescribe any pump he isn't familar with, either. that has been the subject of a heated discussion on this forum, BTW. I side with the doc; if I was a doctor and was pressured by a patient to prescribe something I couldn't support, I'd explain to them the reasoning behind that sound medical decision. think about it--would you want your doctor to put you on a pump he didn't know inside and out? all of my last 3 pumping endos have known the MM pumps like the back of their hands.

I agree...and I trust my endo implicitely(sp?). I'll probably go with the minimed because of his strong recommendation. Now, purple or clear? One good thing about the presentation...BD reps were there with sample meters...got a clear one. The BD reps were prepared! The minimed rep is sending me a purple meter so I can see what the purple pump will look like...and she is sending 3 different infusions sets. Next step...when to start?

[Dewey]

Each person is different, thus will have different feelings & experiences on this. My doctor was not at all familiar with the Deltec when I went on it...in fact, I taught my CDE how to use it, and she relayed info. on to him. When I asked him what pump(s) he recommended, he simply said "Minimed." I told him I'd done plenty of research, was over Minimed (after numerous issues) and said "Next.." (lol). The fact that I was on pump therapy for years before helped in swaying him to give the ok on my freedom of choice. I also suggest that at this point in time, if doctors aren't familiar with the multiple pump companies out there, they should do so immediately. Not everyone is going to opt for one company, therefore doctors need to educate themselves on the ever-growing options and gadgets available. I also agree with others when they say not to base a decision on the closed-loop system. I've been hearing about the implantable pump since 1996, and it's still not on the market in America. This is not to say it won't become available soon, but I'm just saying not to base the decision solely on that.

Because you've not been on pump therapy before Lynne, it might be best for you to listen to your doctor. That said, you'll definitely want to be happy with whatever choice is made, as you'll be using it for the next several years...

It's not a light decision, so be sure you're happy with your choice and you'll do fine. Hope this helps.....Now, on to colors...

[Lynne1]

In all fairness to my doc, he said either Minimed or Animas. However, the Animas doesn't hold enough insulin for me.

I'm sure I'd be happy with either the Minimed or Cozmo. Just obsessing over the right decision at the moment. My doc's minimed rep has been great so far so I hope I won't have customer service issues.

Thanks for all of the helpful advice everyone!

[spike]

Originally Posted by Lynne1

In all fairness to my doc, he said either Minimed or Animas. However, the Animas doesn't hold enough insulin for me.

I'm sure I'd be happy with either the Minimed or Cozmo. Just obsessing over the right decision at the moment. My doc's minimed rep has been great so far so I hope I won't have customer service issues.

Thanks for all of the helpful advice everyone!

Lynne, a call to one of their VP's usually does the trick, as when they billed me 2 years after a transaction for having kept my old pump. turns out the salesman, to make a sale, agreed I could keep my old pump. 2 years after getting the new pump, MM sent me a bill for about $600 and we round and round until I got fed up with the manager of the billing department, who at the time, was quite the witch. I went over her head to one of the company's VP's and he listened to my complaint and had the billing department cancel the bill. It took several months and hours on the phone, so it left me with bad feeling for MM. (this was after the acquisition by Medtronics). Others have posted online in various forums about being billed 2 years after a transaction. Some others have sued them for a variety of reasons and won or settled out of court. Not to say that other manufacturers don't also get sued... I was able to get the complete records of the FDA complaint process about a year or so ago and read the voluminous complaints regarding medical devices. It's scary when you read about "negative outcomes" from procedures and equipment. The detailed records would take days to read, so I scanned through them for MiniMed and other pumping issues, and still spent hours reading.

bottom line: nothing is perfect. Pumps aren't perfect. Pumpers don't pump perfectly. they don't eat perfectly. they don't exercise perfectly. the disease isn't predictable for many of us. Life isn't perfect. We muddle through and do the best we can, don't we?