I've been a podder for a week and a half. I'm on the two-day plan.
Insulin is so expensive, I'm loath to discard any. 3 vials of humalog cost almost $650 each month. Insurance covers the vast majority of it, but knowing that price, I wince if my pod isn't completely empty when I change it.
I due for a change tonight, and I've got 14U left in the pod (my I:C is 1:3). I'll probably bolus the entire batch for dinner, then add another bolus later if needed, so this time is no big deal. HOWEVER...
I'm loath to change a pod at work. It's a bit of an involved process. Inevitably, I will hit day 2 one of these days with just not quite enough in the pod to feel good to go for the day, but too much to throw away (like 30U or something).
What do you all do with left-over insulin when you change? Do you transfer it to the new pump? Are there risks with that if careful aseptic technique is followed?
I change my pods only when empty. No matter where I'm at. Sometimes, I might change with less than 10 units, but usually I wait for it to alarm that it's empty. If I'm in a public place, I'll try to find a restroom for the change. I've done it a few times in my truck too. There's always a way to take care of it. You'll get used to it eventually. Don't be afraid to let others know. If they have issues, it's their problem not yours.
I do the same - let it alarm on the time up alert - but I then continue until I get the empty alarm. I also change when I need to rather than where I am.
I also change my pods only when empty wherever I am. Because of this I end up carrying the insulin bottle on me at all times. If it's inconvenient/uncomfortable to change where I am I always have a back up syringe that I can use to give myself shots until I'm in a better place to change the thing.
I have read, and was told by my trainer when I asked about it, that you can reuse the insulin. I haven't done it yet, but I will be trying it out soon enough. I'm still in the early stages myself. From what I know, you draw the insulin out of the old pod and put it back into a vial. Then, you draw what you need out of the vial and put it into the new pod. I think that I will be rather careful and will only reuse it once, trying not to continually mix new with "recaptured" insulin. Although, when I read about people reusing it, this didn't seem like it was a big deal; at least not that I am recalling.
I'll reuse insulin if I have a pod failure within a day. Otherwise, if there's any left at the end of three days, I just toss it out. I think it's OK for about 24 hours, but beyond that, I don't mess with it.
I think that what the insulin in the Pod has been exposed to should influence how viable/safe it is to re-insert. Some of claimed failure due to the insulin being exposed to the sun and extreme temperatures: not good for storage or future use. I use R-500 which costs about $700 a month with insurance covering 1/2 after my part D runs out (6months) I can get refills at 20% Part B co-pay then, but havn't fought that battle yet. I end up with 10units, maybe more 'wasted' and have tried to extract it from old pod and failed (upside down, rightside up, anyway). If I had an 'early' failure I'd be SOL. I don't worry about 'mixing' since I've never been successful in extracting the <10 units. Also, manufacturers say that a vial (20ml) should be discarded after 6 weeks: I keep on for as long as it works and doesn't look 'funky' my DE said this was OK.
OK, here I sit with a pod 'failure' on the day I was to change the Pod in another 6 hrs. I was administering a Bolus and it beeped and beeped and auto-deactivated the Pod. I filled another Pod and all seems well with that one. I keep trying to extract unused insulin from the Pod, using the 'new' syringe that comes with the new Pod and that I have used to fill the new Pod to the minimum level of 85. THIS time I was able to get out what appears to be about 20 units which represents (1) day of insulin for me. It is in my 'used' (just filled Pod) syringe and in my 'cooler' pac. How can I use this? Will it be safe to use? It has never been exposed to heat, sweat, and I always use swabs to extract and even touch up the needle and portal. Should I just keep it until my next fill, use swabs to sterilize insulin vial and tip of syringe and just insert this needle tip into my vial and pull out what I need to reach 85?? I am fearful of co-mingling the insulin in the syringe and the 'virgin' insulin in the vial. Remember, I pay huge amounts for my insulin and don't want to jeopordize the vial insulin. ADVISE???? PLEASE!!!
