Dexcom Phone Service and SNAP Pump

Diabetes Technology Glucose Monitoring
#1

I never had problems with Dexcom before but lately the response from Technical Service has been horrible. Last time I called they had 20 callers on the line. I gave my phone number and they NEVER called back that night. I had to leave on a trip the next morning so I had to rip out a sensor.

Today I called for another reason and they had 4 callers waiting. It has been an hour and no call back. I am beginning to suspect that they only have a single person manning or wommaning the phone since I can't believe that it takes 15 minutes per call. And, of course, I have to leave the house shortly and will be unable to answer.

Actually, there was another call that they did answer promptly but they gave me the wrong answer!

Up until now I have loved Dexcom and the G4. It is so accurate that I often dose based on the reading and have never had a problem.

Am I the only one with this issue? Perhaps they don't like me. I am hoping there is an alternative out there somewhere. I will look.

By the way, I am using the SNAP PUMP (paying myself for a while while waiting for the insurance to respond. I really like this pump. It is very simple and easy to use. Still a new product but it is a really good one. Anyone else try it??

Jeff

#2

My son has only had the DexCom for a couple of weeks. We've had 3 sensors come out in as many weeks. I've called Tech Support about each one. The first time my call was answered promptly and they took my information and sent out a replacement. The second 2 times, including today, I there were calls in front of me so I left my information and both days I received calls back in a timely manner. I didn't "time" them but I would say within an hour both times. Sorry you are having trouble with them.

I wish we could get the sensors to stay on my son. He's so active and so muscular that I'm afraid it's just not going to work for us right now. :-(

#3

They took a week to call me back after receiving my replacement to get a shipping sticker to send my defective one back to them

#4

Jeff, Dexcom very recently was approved for pediatric use. I believe that is why there are so many callers ahead of you. It was the same when they first introduced the G4 back in November of 2012. Unless it is an urgent situation I would just chill and wait until some time has passed before trying to call. I have been very pleased with the customer service, but I haven't had any issues with the system for months so I haven't needed to call.

#5

OK - PARTIAL APOLOGY!! Dexfolks did call back while I was away from my phone for a few minutes. I called them back, was ##7 in line but they answered the call within a few minutes. So, perhaps I over-reacted this time. But last time was a real problem.

Jeff

#6

They could increase their staff, though. Or separate the two products a bit. I finally got a call back today (see my second post) and the fellow was very helpful and gave me a few things to try. My problem is that the receiver cuts off every once in a while from an hour to a few hours even though the sensor was never more than a foot away from the transmitter. Not sure I buy their static charge explanation (this is from FLORIDA) but there were a few other things he said that made sense. So this fellow made up for the lack of response in the past.

Dex for Kids is a GREAT idea. Even though they say you can't dose on it, it does give you important warnings that kids can respond to. And I find the numbers are usually within about 10% of the meter reading. They DO have a great product.

Jeff

#7

I generally have good luck with customer service, however I haven't called recently. Where I have worked, support is a very specialized position that takes seeks, months or even years to train someone, so it may not be possible for Dexcom to increase staff to cover increased demand. Perhaps they could have the support reps work additional hours.

I have problems with the receiver losing the transmitter when I lay on my transmitter. It takes a while for them to reconnect, even if they are close together. I also get reduced range when I leave my receiver in the bathroom which has granite counters and back splashes. I don't know if the granite causes a problem.

#8

You aren't alone. A week ago, I had a sensor that shed a significant amount of blood, and I wasn't sure whether I could use it or not, and wanted to ask. I called at about 6 PM, and then again at 9:30, and never got a call back. So I called a 1 AM and got someone on the phone, and he apologized profusely, saying that they are experiencing an extremely high volume of calls. He said I could have used the sensor, but because I had already taken it out and put in a new one, he overnighted me a new sensor. I think the explanation that there are a lot of parents new to Dexcom, since the FDA approval is probably right -- and therefore, it WILL calm down. But it's hard to wait when you have a problem that needs resolving NOW!!

#9

Likewise with tech support problems recently. It used to be that I always got to speak with someone right away even on weekends, as previously mentioned, I would either wait on line only to have the phone go dead, or leave a number but never get a call back. By the by, Animas support has also gone down the tubes recently.
#10

Jeff, I recently wrote a blog post about Dexcom and Static: http://testguessandgo.com/2014/04/17/dexcom-and-static/

For me, I do think that static was the issue as described in the blog post. However, I spent the winter in Arizona. It seems as though static would be an unusual problem for Florida, unless your transmitter is definitely in contact with synthetic fabrics.

#11

I have used the Dexcom system since September of 2007 and I also have noticed an increase in time spent waiting on the "phone queue". I had an issue over the weekend where I got the '???' for over 5 hrs. Since I pay out of pocket I hate to pull a sensor that might decide to come back to life on its own. I called CS and waited 35 minutes and still didn't seem to be moving up in the queue, so I hung up. Called back the next day and waited another 25 minutes and finally got a live person. Once I got connected with a live person, my issue was resolved in a short time and Dexcom will replace my sensor. I don't know what the reason for the high call volume, but I agree with Natalie in that it will calm down?? :)

#12

I recently called dex a couple of time in regards to another failed G4 receiver (3rd since January) and both times I was caller 5 or 6 and waited about 15-20 minutes both times. I did not request call back because I wasn't going to be able to have my phone on after about 1/2 hr. It was a little longer wait than has been usual during the past 6 months, but nothing like the hour long waits from a year and a half ago when the g4 first came out. I have almost always gotten calls back within 2 hours even when they seemed to be at their busiest. Maybe I have just been lucky.

They also made a big mistake and shipped my replacement to a completly wrong address that did not match my address of record in the slightest for no apparent reason. However, they did correct it as soon as it was discovered. hope the info helps