Hi, my son, age 16 is going to try the Omnipod. It will be here within a few days. It sounds pretty simple so we’re going to forgo the training but I have a question for those that have made the same switch. He’s been on the MM pump (currently the 722) for 6 years. Can we basically set up the omnipod with the same I:C ratios and basal settings? I know the pod only allows 4 basal rates, and that should be okay for us (at this point anyway). Anything else that is really different that I should know about?
Thanks for your help!
Kara, Timsma
Active insulin is calculated differently, just be aware as it could cause a low. When calculating a bolus, the MM calculates active insulin based upon any recent ‘food’ and ‘correction bolus’. The Omnipod calculates active insulin from correction bolus’ only. It’s something that you should probably discuss with your trainer or doctor. Hope this makes sense.
Personally, I wouldn’t forgo the training and would do this transition under the supervision of a diabetes educator or your doc who specializes in insulin pumps. Even more so because it concerns your son. The pod is unique and even if you learn one or two nuances from the training, it might be well worth it for you and your son. Why take any chances?
I have only ever used the Pods, but I have about 8 different basal rates set so I wouldn’t hesitate if you need more. As far as I can tell you can set as many as you want.
Totally agree, I would always get the training from any insulin pump. I have been on three different pumps in my 15 years and each one is different with their programming. Please get the training with the Ominpod. Your son is worth it I’m sure!!
I believe you can only program 4 IC ratios but you can set much more than 4 basal rates as Rebecca has noted.I know we’ve had even more than 8 at certain times.
I would highly recommend that you attend the training. I have used pumps for 14 years and each setup is different.
It’s not worth the problems just for skipping a two hour meeting. Plus the OmniPod rep will be able to answer all of your questions.
I also would NOT forgo the training sessions. I learned a lot & made a friend whom I can depend on if I have any problem>that is invaluable!
Thanks for that information! That’s exactly what I was looking to find out.
Thanks. I guess I misunderstood what someone told me about the basal rates, I:C ratios. I had it backward. Good to know!
Thanks everyone for your advice. I’m rethinking the training. Will call Insulet to set it up tomorrow for hopefully, next week then.
I’d do the training, as others have said. If nothing more, it is always good to befriend the trainer…you might need a favor or help from him/her someday. A lot of Omnipod’s trainers are T1’s themselves and they really seem to “get it”. I found that very refreshing.
Kara, our training was only a half hour, so no big deal. Lorainne is correct, you can set lots of basal rates, but only 4 ratios. I wish there were more, but it is not a huge issue for us. I don’t understand why Insulet did this though.
Timsma,
I just recently switched from a MM722 (well over 12 years using it, I forget what year I started) to the Omnipod, and I learned a whole lot from the training… I suggest you learn as much as you can from the trainer and ask lots of questions! That really helped me.
I am soooo happy I switched! I will never go back to a tubed pump- especially that so many more sites can be used with the Omnipod!
Good luck to you!
Cara - it’s good to hear that you’re happy with your switch! I was concerned for you at the beginning 
I hope it’s all getting ironed out as you get used to the new pump!
Thanks everyone. I have training set up for this Monday afternoon. He has an endo appt. that morning at a different location (they have 2 locations), but our clinic requires that the training be done there rather than in home. So, I now will have the whole day off from work for the endo appt. and training (and an early morning dental appt. for me, lol). I can’t wait to see what he thinks about it once it’s on him!
Cara, I hope my son loves it as much as you do! Crossing fingers here. If not, he can switch back though.
Ours will be about 2 hours she said. Others will be there as well for their training. Oh well.
Mine was about 2 hours also…will be 1 year on 4/14 so not that long ago and even though you have experience with a pump I’m sure you find it helpful. They’ll help you get all the settings in the pdm, make sure to make a copy of the settings and make new ones if you change them. I use the Co-pilot software and the Ominpod Extension so you can make a pdf copy and keep them on your computer should you ever have to re-load them which I hope I never have to…Good Luck and Happy Podding!!
I believe it allows for more than 4 basal rates…we have had more before…
You are correct, it is ratios that are restricted to 4, not basal rates. I hope that they change that eventually because we could use more. I knew this going in though and decided that we could deal with it by basal changes to compensate.