What (realistically) would you like your pump to be able to do? (By realistically I mean not "instantly cure diabetes" or "fly" haha)
I would like my pump to have a built in cgm, I would like my pump to have a calculator feature (for adding carbs), I would like my pump to have a built in "text" feature so I can directly send my numbers to my mom/Endo/etc. Hopefully these will all be coming soon! :)
You are Data. I am impressed. 'nuf said.
Honestly, I think it does great right now. It calculates doses based on blood glucose tests; it warns me of highs and lows based on CGM readings. It allows me to create and manipulate basal/bolus. Do I wish it did everything...well, yea.
But my life would be a whole lot different without it.
The number one thing I wish my pump had is speech output for those with visual impairments. Anything else I wish for are just extra "nice to have" features.
I also wish there was a "reduce by %" feature for boluses. Would be really handy when decreasing a bolus by 25% or whatever for planned exercise.
Also, I wish features of the Cozmo, which were and still are miles beyond any other pump I know of, would re-appear in some fashion in other pumps.
I wish my Medtronic had the following features:
1. text I can read easily.
2. a backlight that actually lights the screen
3. Step sequences for "reservoir+ set menu" that are actually the steps you normally take to change the reservoir. Ex. When you hit 'reservoir+set menu,' the default is "fill cannula." Really?! How many times does anyone hit that button only for the purpose of filling their cannula? You have to scroll up to "reservoir setup." There are other backward steps, but won't go into all of them.
4. I wish the warning for a low reservoir would do what I set it for which is at 5 units. I know it still has at least 15+ units at that level and it keeps beeping every few minutes. I want one beep warning and one only.
5. I wish the pump was actually an artificial pancreas that accurately measures my BG and releases insulin, or stops it, accordingly.
Since you said give only realistic features, I have to stop there.
Me too, Spock. I understand when people say the things that bug them about my pump in particular (Ping) and pumps in general. But I guess I'm just too darn adaptable because I just accept its quirks and love it anyway. Maybe that's why I'm a cat person? (I seem to be stuck in another thread!)
Btw I was at dinner in a restaurant in Malibu when my nephew's wife passed us a note (a note??) saying that "Data" was sitting behind us. he was.No Tony Stark additions, huh. I wish my pump had another way of delivering insulin, lol.
I do wish my pump wouldn't freak out when the reservoir starts running a little low.
I use the new medtronic 530G and many of the things I wanted changed have been improved int eh 530G. One thing I would like to have are more pump colors. I really enjoy the clear right now especially with my beloved Indiana University Skin it on it.
The IU Logo makes everything look better.
I agree with someone else who said a better back light would be nice as would be open data reporting for use in other software reporting packages. I would also really like the ability to communicate with a dexcom.
rick
Kinda am talking Tony Stark here lol, I ment no like cure diabetics or find a cure to cancer
or maybe let us pick out our own "freak out" music for the low res alarm?!? I wish my pump could double as my music device since they are both always on me. One device for all things would be nice.
I can relate to 2 and esp #3
my last version of the Medtronic pump was not as confusing when it comes to changing the reservoir set. But they changed the process and the Q's I'm always speeding through the process and answering the Q's incorrectly...therefore, I end up going through the entire process over again.???
Closed loop (via integration with CGM)!
'Nuff said....
I really like my Medtronic pump, but wish it would communicate with my Dexcom. I tried Medtronic's CGM, and it just did not work for me. I also wish they would eliminate the questions asking whether I am disconnected and if I see drops at the end of the tubing. Who really needs two extra steps?
Thanks, Zoe. You made my day.
In my opinion the data exchange of current pumps leaves much to desire. Pumpers have all the data at hand to replace their hand written log. However the software is often limited, focused on one operating system and the exchange format is a mess.
The ideal: plug the pump into your computer and a new drive opens up with a nicely formatted XML file containing all the data that is in the pump. That would be my dream. Just upload it to the web service of your choice and get the analysis you want. The site developers could then offer convenient tools to do the upload automatically. Just plug the pump in and the data flows. This would help pumpers tremendously to work with their data in a more proactive way: to identify negative developments early and to develop strategies to get around this. Week by week not after months with an even worser A1c.
But the reality is grim from the perspective of convenience. Animas made a nice job with their XML format but you need their software that needs manual operation. The ping can do that with the help from the Abbott CoPilot which is also inconvenient. The AccuCheck has the SmartPix device but needs several steps to get the data. But Medtronic is really a mess. Their software is only running on specific windows versions - new operating system are only adopted slowly. They just offer CVS files and decided to translate the header to the language of the user. The header is the textual explanation of the columns of the CVS file. The problem is that depending on the settings and the version of the pump the textual header will change! It is a nightmare! The Medtronic team has really failed to accomplish a reliable data export. It is prone to errors and misinterpretation and by no means it is appropriate for a medical device. Please Medtronic give your users at least an XML file that is language independend and uses standardized ISO dates. Is that so hard to understand? Sorry for my rant. I have complained to them but they do not listen to one single voice. Perhaps we as TuDiabetes could get their attention?!
Holger, I have also complained to medtornic about the lack of an export feature for years. I do not mind carelink it works pretty well but it is not portable in the sense that it can be downloaded to an external program and used in that manner. There is a standard, I forget the link, but we had a speaker a while back who developed a nice looking platform, it is open source and yes does work, but if we cannot get our data to it, it is of little use.
Now in medtronics defense what they say is hey we supply blue tooth like connectivity and if a developer wants to build a platform to intercept the signal and interpret it, they are free to do so, so long as they do not infringe our many patents. Yeah well good luck, third party developers are scratching by on a shoe string and the threat of violation of one of medtronic's patents is so overwhelming no one will do it. I do not blame them, who wants to face medtronic in court over an issue that really has very little money in it? No one I know.
that "reduce" or "increase" feature is for basals, not boluses.
I also wish the backlight was brighter and the type a bit larger.
I should have added the data download to my list, especially since I am a Mac person. Will just add my vote for this one.
Holger, Thanks for your informative analysis. The biggest complaint I have with respect to the various medical device manufacturers is a philosophical one. They build their proprietary silos that inhibit interoperability. What they fail to realize is that the data belongs to the user! They act like the data is theirs!
there are a few things that my Cozmore had that my Ping doesn't that I would like to have again:
1) a Hypo manager that recommends the amt of grams of carb to correct a low reading
2) a titration for correction doses. I need to increase my correction above certain threshholds
3) a "home screen" that tells me my IOB without having to go through a menu of things, entering either a bg reading or a carb amt.
4) my Cozmore also have a selection of home screens, like I said above IOB and one that had my name and a phone number incase I got into trouble. That was nice when I was out and about by myself.