Hey guys, I have been on the OmniPod for about 2 years now. While on the old pods, I had multiple issues that were breaking points for me. (leaking insulin while pod was on skin) I eventually decided to go to shots while waiting for the new system.
Well.. since July 1, I have had 18 pod alarms. Yes - I have been only filling the pods with 195 units or less, and I have been priming it on the right side of the PDM. Now, I have been trying to get a supervisor to call me for over a month. The fact that no one will call me back has left me livid. This is my health - my life - not some kind of sick game.
Last night it came to the point where I decided to go back to shots, yet again. My life when wearing the pods consisted of me being constantly worried that the pod would alarm during class or during a test. Plus, having to constantly change the pod, sometimes having a lag time between changes, has made my numbers go crazy. I don't need that stress..
Anyway, I was wondering if anyone had any suggestions for getting in touch with a supervisor - or somebody higher up than the 24/7 people. Thanks!
I have the name and number of Omnipod rep and CDE in my area. If you want to message me I can give you their contact info and hopefully they can get you the info for the reps in your area.
As much as you dont want to hear this..you sound like you have made up your mind on quitting the system so why do you need a supervisor? I have the name and number of the "3rd in command" of the company, but again..why would you want this when you ahve decided to quit?
I understand. The customer support these days is very frustrating, especially if you are having any kind of problem which always happens with something new. Besides your local rep and local trainer, your endo office should have Insulet contacts too.
I'd work with your Doctor's office and a Diabetes educator too. They may be able to pin point problems that you can share with Insulet. Heck, they may even be able to fix many of them.
Also, how long have you had your set of new pods? I just finished my first set of 10 new pods, and zero errors. All of them filled 100%. So I wonder if Insulet had issues with the first rounds of new pods they made, and may now have the issues resolved.
I dont know about that Scott..as you know I started using mine a few months ago...im on box 4 with 1 error. It would be interesting to know if there is a tie between the lot numbers of people with all these failures or if its random ones.
There was a very good correlation found,on a previous thread, between failures and several lot numbers
Bethany, it sounds like you are having chronic issues with the pods that span both generations and it is unlikely that these issued are directly related to pod defects.
I suggest you contact your original trainer or another in your area and spend some time with him/her to try to identify the possible causes. I don't think you will get any resolution by phone conversation.
If you can't find a solution fairly quickly you should consider changing to a pump using different technology possibly the Animas Ping. Constant stress , as you seem to be experiencing, is not worth any advantages presented by pods
There may be some production variations, but I believe there are relatively few lots in circulation yet. The first four pods I had from lot L40420 failed but since then every one has worked. I'm now on my 8th pod, I stopped pod 5 early (before 3 days) but 6 and 7 both ran to 80 hours. All these pods are from the same lot and same box, there is no correlation with the pod number itself.
I'm pretty sure that the PDM must adapt the settings on the pod to the individual user. That might mean it takes a long time to get the settings right for some people.
I have been on the new pods for 6 months with hardly a blip. Now I have 3 failures in a row! :-( I still love my Omnipod but I am very ready to stop blipping.
Well ;-)... Are those failures pod alarms - i.e. where the PDM displays "pod error", if so, what is the lot number of the failed pods (the five digit number preceded by L on the bottom of the pod?)
If not then I guess the failures were occlusions (the PDM should say something to indicate this), and that could just be the site.
In any case the Insulet guys are pretty good at diagnosing, and fixing, problems like this. It may take a while, and they have been swamped by whatever the issues are with people changing over from the old to the new pods, but they're pretty good at it.
All 3 were "pod errors" and from lot # L40379. They are over-nighting me 3 replacements and asked me to send them the failed pods for their trouble shooting team.
That's a lot number I haven't seen before. My four pod errors were all from one box in L40420, these were the first four pods I tried, since then I haven't had any errors (I'm now on my eight pod). I didn't memorize the other lot number, but it wasn't 40379.
I think the new pods are much more sensitive to possible problems than the old ones. I suspect the new PDM fine tunes the pod settings to deal with either variations in the sites or manufacturing variations in the pod. The PDM does know the lot number (you can see it recorded in the alarm history) so it could easily retain data about each lot.
I need to talk to a supervisor because I have only had the OmniPod for 2 years, and my insurance will only cover a new pump every 4 years. In order to fight the insuarance company I have to exhaust all options. Plus I need records and things.
I honestly don't think the insurance will buy me another pump at this point :(
The thing is, though, I've gone over everything with my rep and the support people. I don't know what I could possibly be doing wrong? Are there any tricks? :)
I have been in contact with her. We sat down and she watched me prepare a pod - apparently I did everything right. She reminded me of a few things to make sure not to do while preping it.
I think the lot number on most of the pods was like L40435 or something... but anyways, thanks for the advice! I am trying to fight the insurance company..
