I have about 4-6 weeks before I can fully switch to the pump. I have heard mixed reviews and even wrote a blog about it. I know I dont want the Omnipod as I am lean and it will look bulky on me. I will be getting a CGM as well as I feel that will give my team a better sense of whats going on. I have narrowed it down to Animas or Medtronic. I need to know which is best to use, best in customer service, training, etc. I want to be sure when my dr clears me I have a sound, definite decision to tell the rep I’m working with who will order it and make sure my insurance covers it, etc. So anything you guys can tell me would be grateful. I am extremely excited but frustrated in switching from MDI going to the pump.
Animas vs, Medtronic is almost like Toyota vs. Honda. Both are fine tools. Medtronic currently has CGM capability. Animas will have it “soon”. Their definition of “soon” differs from mine, LOL. I currently have a Ping, and its great. Animas cust. service has been great so far. I have heard less than optimal stories about Medtronic’s cust. service. However, I just got off the phone with them today regarding infusion sets and the lady that helped me was 100% courteous and professional. I think its hit or miss. Also, I have read about more pump malfunctions regarding Medtronic pumps. Not to say that Ping’s dont freak out, but thats the facts as I see them and researched them. Again, everything is prone to failure, regardless of brand. At the end of the day, I dont think you can go wrong with either one. I chose Animas because its water resistant, can be controlled from the meter, and the interface seemed a bit more up to date and less clunky.
i have a MM 522 right now and am in the works of getting a Ping… its a lot more advanced then MM… MM just has the CGM and a poor one at that… i have it also along with the dexcom… lets just say i couldnt even get the MM to work where as the dexcom is great PAINLESS and pretty accurate and it also tests ever 5 minutes… The Ping has the lowest basal/bolus rate and is waterproof and the meter is one touch which i swear by… and theres also a food manager software installed in it and you can operate pretty much everything from the meter!
oh and as for MMs customer service… ive been with them for about 9 years and when they were medtronic MM customer service was great but now its subpar id got for the Ping
i was a bit like you a few weeks ago, except the NHS paid for my pump. in the end i decided to go with the medtronic although i dont use the CGM at the moment. i had 3 trials, 2 with an animas 2020, one with a medtronic pump, and in the end chose the medtronic simply because i preferred the slow bolus delivery rate which prevented the stinging i occasionally got with the animas. Both company reps who i met were very friendly and professional, and very helpful with the pumps, and so far i cannot fault either from my own personal experience. already im really liking life with a pump versus mdi mainly because of the freedom, so i wouldn’t worry too much about which one you get, they all do the same job.
good luck
I agree that you’ll be happy with whatever you choose. I’m a MM user and have the CGM, and have been pretty happy with both products. I will say that the pump is very easy to get used to (and I thought that I wouldn’t like it!) while the CGM has a slower pace of optimizing settings and getting used to the alarms (and when to shut them off). Their customer service has gone downhill in the last few years but I’m relatively pleased for the time being.
The biggest factor for me was integrated pump and CGM, which is really nice for running, but it’s largely those types of small details that will help you. The Dexcom CGM is a lot nicer looking, while the Navigator tends to lead the pack in terms of CGM accuracy from what the researchers around here tell me. It’s too bad they can’t all get together and build the perfectly designed unit…
Thanks…I know that whichever I go with there will be problems. I am just need to be sure I make the right decision. The pump is expensive even though it is covered under my current insurance but still! With Animas I only got one brochure and a DVD, with medtronic I got 2 borchures but took forever to get that info in the mail whereas animas sent it within 3-5 days after I requested it. I do need a CGM as my sugar levels do go up and down so the CGM will help between finger sticks even though I know it may not be fool proof.
thats true they all do the same job in general but if you want to talk in general then the ping has the upper hand cause its got the lowest basal/bolus rate available currently… which leads to tighter control… i love MM cause its helped me alot but its like the blackberry vs the iphone… its no comparisson!
thanks…I have commonwealth care which they told me the pump is completely covered. But just not wanting to have to say down the road “I wished I went with that pump” as I’ll be stuck with that pump until I get a perm job that has better insurance, then I can switch but for now, I’m stuck with the one I choose
The Dexcom sits a lot better on you… doesnt have a needle to throw out like the HUGE one MM has… and like i said it checks every 5 min as compared to MM which is every 20 min… and as for freestyle there not on the market currently…
That is why I liked the medtronics has the intigrated CGM in it which can be helpful. Hrm, I have heard about the navigator but haven’t researched in it yet as no one mentioned it to me.
I have the animas ping and I love it! The customer service is amazing! My favorite feature is the remote. You can bolus without having to pull your pump out and input info. It’s great for people on the go and works especially well for me at work. I was going to go with the mm only because of the linked cgm but the cgm needle is brutal! That’s the kind of needle I use for IV’s at work lol!!! Plus my endo hates mm cgm, she likes the pump but the inaccuracies with numbers make her nervous. I just recieved my dexcom this week but don’t start training until next week. The company sent me out a demo sensor and it’s almost painless to insert plus it’s tiny s no bulk! Abbott, the company that makes the navigator, is having distribution problems so you if you need one soon you’re out of luck! The rep told me that they won’t be available until December at the earliest.
i just got the call that i will be recieving my Ping in a few days and customer service is AMAZING!
The Navigator has been on backorder since Jan and they are not expecting to resolve that until Dec. As the units were breaking that people had, they offered a $2,000 buyout because Abbott could not honor the warranty. Even if you wanted a Navigator right now, you would not be able to get it.
what color did you pick?
I am also a Ping user. The fact that it is waterproof was very important to me. I also like having the remote. I like having the food database and you can customize it to your favorite foods so you just pull up that particular food and it will bolus for you. If you don’t like the infusion sets that Animas uses, you can use other brands. MM makes it difficult to do that. I am not using one of the Animas ones. That is not something I would have thought of before getting the pump.
As far as CGMS goes, I like my Dexcom. I had the Navigator prior to Dexcom and I like the Dexcom better than the Navigator. I don’t have experience with MM other than the stories online with people complaining.
Both Animas and Dexcom have good customer service.
I’ve been pumping for 9 years, first with MM then to Cozmo and now back to MM. I dislike MM somewhat intensely to be perfectly honest. Their customer service has, but for maybe two calls, been awful. Their billing department is worse. However, I went back to MM because of the integrated system. There is just no other system out there with it. If there were, I’d switch tomorrow. Were having an integrated pump/cgms not so important to me, my choice right now would be the ping as I feel the same way as you about the Omnipod. Good luck, whatever you choose will be such an amazing experience. I did 20 years of MDI before going on the pump and kicked myself for not doing it sooner.
black… im plain im not into the colors lol
Actually, I went with black also but picked out a red skin for it to add some color. I figure it is easier to change skin colors than pump colors.
for the money it cost id go with the dexcom… if you try it you will loveee it it hurts soooo much less then the MM and i can handle pain but the MM hurts and bleeds and its just no good i love the idea but they have to make a better design