I started the pump a week ago and love it so far. I'm using the Accu Check Aviva Combo. I'm just wondering..why so little users of this? It seems to have everything as the other do plus more. Is it the price? So far the company has been great to deal with and I am very happy w/ this pump.
The Pump is just recently on the US market.
In the Netherlands the Hospitals promote the Medtronic a little more.
I'm the owner of a Combo for two years now. It was supposed to be a temporary pump. I choose the Accu-Chek Solo and Accu-Chek let me use the Combo until the Solo arrived. Well...the Solo never arrived, they aborted the solo 1 program witch led to very bad publicity.
A problem with the Combo is the blue-tooth connection, it needs heavy load batteries to power the blue-tooth. And needs re-pairing time to time.
And when you bring in a teststrip while the meter is off, the results might be stored at an unlogic place, so always put your power on first and choose bg test from the menu.
Thank you so much. I was actually experiencing that issue tonight and when I called the help line they were stumped. I was getting nervous that my pump is jacked. I even put a few needles and a novolog pen in my work bag for tomorrow.
Also, when you skip a couple of tests, the communication takes a while, sometimes even no response.
I've noticed that. Because I have a backup meter I use sometimes. Then it'll tell me theres no pump data.
I think it's more a case of the Combo being one of the newer ones on the market. I know that as a first time pumper I did my research and found it to be the pump I wanted and then worked backwards to get it (started at Roche vs. at the Doctors). Roche reps actually did 90% of the work and even passed the sale off to a 3rd party company when they discovered that they were out-of-network. That alone potentially saved me approximately $800.
The price is comparable to just about every pump out there and I found it to be even more competitive than most if paying for it out-of-pocket (which is what I was going to do if my insurance company turned the authorization down). The cash price was very competitive / comparable (discounted $1400) and they had a 0%, 24 month payment plan. Everyone else had 12 month payment plans.
Mike
Could you explain this a little more, please? I don't understand what or why the meter would tell you there is no "pump data".
Also the same for TheoT1D. I am not understanding what you mean by "skip a couple of tests".
I have rarely experienced a significant delay between the pump and meter except when the battery is low (especially the meter battery), or when my body blocks the bluetooth signal.
In the US, we have the similar situation as in the Netherlands. Medtronic is THE market leader and physicians are much more likely to promote it.
Coupled with that are some historical problems that Roche's direct predecessor company (Disetronic) had with the FDA and their previous pumps, puts Roche in a difficult position when marketing their pump therapy.
I will agree that since Roche took over, the support has gone from "good to "extremely good", rocketing right past "very good".
The Combo has some unique features to its overall approach to managing diabetes, some of it good, but some of it is kinda .... "really? That's the best you have?" Granted, I could probably say the same for any other manufacturer, but I only have experience with Roche (and Disetronic), so take my criticism with a grain of salt.
By skipping a test, i mean that you are bolusing without testing, you do the calculation in your head and guessing your bg is and will be fine. Or indead using an other meter.
If the meter can not comunicate, or there is a lot of data to transfer, because u did not use the meter.
I was advice by Roche to first power on the meter, it already starts to build a connection with the pump. And they told me to use Duracel Ultra Power batteries and have them replace every 3 weeks or sooner, in the Netherlands they will sent them to the customer for free.
The experience with the company has been great. They e-mailed me first. I was thinking about it already. When they said they'd do the work I figured "sure!" They came back to me with $500 out of pocket over 12 mos and 0% interest. Can't beat that. They got all of the info to my insurance quickly as well. (I understand this was a sales dept). Now, the nurse educator has been phenomenal. She is working with me to get my number correct and has been with me every step. Really makes me happy to deal w/ Roche. I should have researched a bit more first though as the omnipod seems tempting to me. BTW I just ordered those batteries off amazon. Better safe than sorry.
I'm not really buying into the power on first concept. If the bluetooth symbol is solid, you have a connection. In the end, as long as you follow a method that works for you, fine.
My battery experience, detailed in the Accu-Chek forum is that I now get significantly over 4 weeks, but I have also turned off every possible alarm.
Which batteries on Amazon? I really don't worry too much but Energizer "AA"'s are hit and miss. I have had them last a month to as little as 4 days. If there is a better option out there, will try it. Really don't care too much but more than willing to spend a little more if they will last a little longer.
Mike