Pumps!!!

[Mom C]

We are in the market for a pump and of course all companies are very friendly right now. I do have a question for everyone, is anyone pumping on the Accu Chek Spirit? I talked to a rep the other day and they told me that they will cover the other 20 percent that our insurance does not cover. So in other words the pump would be 100 percent covered for us, but our clinic did not have the a sample pump to play with. I just wanted to know if there are any pros, cons to this pump? Thanks.

[miss_behave]

Heres a thread I made awhile ago. It was the first time I'd even heard the pump mentioned on CWD forums! Most people have never heard of it, let alone considered it when pump shopping. Needless to say, its not very popular!
http://forums.childrenwithdiabetes.com/showthread.php?t=8422

[Mom C]

Thanks for the info, very helpful.

[jendean]

I know they do a lot of the stuff that the more major brands do, and that accucheck is a trustworthy name.
I would look at the basal totals and increment and time that it takes for a bolus to go in... those things are all important.

Here is a fancy schmancy pump comparison for you to look at. It helped me decide.

http://www.diabetesnet.com/diabetes_technology/insulin_pump_models.php

Forgot to add the link before. sorry about that

[miss_behave]

I've researched the Spirit a little more, out of interest. My understanding is that it is a basic insulin pump without the bells and whistles that the others have. It is apparently a "budget insulin pump"- its cheaper than the others.

-it has no bolus wizard on it, so you must do all calculations manually as you used to have to do with pre 2002-ish pumps
-no IOB display either
-its smallest increments are 0.1 units (as opposed to 0.05 and 0.025 on the Animas)
-it shuts down permanently after 4 years, you must buy a new one
-the PDA's are only sold in the US

[ROVERT81402]

Our endo told us that it is not a very "good" pump. I didn't ask any questions, I just looked else where.

[linda]

sorry have not heard of Accu Check pump, maybe new? meters yes....realy try to stick with true blue pumps!! call your insurance co to help with the research?? Or let the pump co's do it for you...our cozmo/ smiths medical contacted our ins co and took care all pre approvals...

[twodoor2]

I would probably want a "Smart pump" simply because the calculations can be gruesome if you want to avoid insulin stacking and other anomalies. If your insurance company only covers 80%, many of the pump companies have extended payment plans for the balance. This might be something that would be of benefit to you.

[TracieandJim]

We are also pump shopping. The Accu-Check pump was the first pump choice we threw out simply cuz of all the gadgets. Too much to configure in to the entire process. D is hard enough to figure in anything extra. Our favorites so far are Animas and Minimed. We are still undecided though. :o

[funnygrl]

All the things miss behave mentioned at serious issues imo, but I've also played with the virtual pump on their website, and it's very confusing to me. It's not menu driven, and for some actions you need to memorize key stroke combinations (ie, press 2 keys at a time). Further, you have to program every hour of the basal rate, ie, program midnight to 1, 1 to 2, 2 to 3, etc, etc. Irritating.

The virtual pump seems to have been taken off their site.

That being said, 20% of a pump cost is a lot, and it includes a backup pump, which is VERY nice. Being in the US, you will get the PDA. The people I've talked to who have used it like it. So I would consider it, if I were you.

[DadTheImpaler]

Here is a fancy schmancy pump comparison for you to look at. It helped me decide.

Where? Am I missing it?

[wendyc]

One thing to keep in mind is that if this is not a smart pump, your child most likely will not be able to work it without assistance. This might be something to think about if she is becoming more independent in her D care.

We are on the Animas 2020 and a very happy with it, though they do not have a CGMS yet, and probably won't for 1-1 1/2 years.