Calling on the T1 community – your advice please.

4 March 2010
3 Comments

Hi all

I got an email from a reader this week, with a few questions in it. An outline of the questions as follows:

1. Have you even been in contact with anyone around my age (26) who is using a pump that wouldn’t mind a few questions?

2. How do you start the pump process?  Do you contact your diabetes team at the hospital first (as unhelpful they may seem to be for me), or do I contact the pump suppliers first?

3. Also, what happens if I shell out all that money for the pump, and then realise it really isn’t for me?

Given that I’m no expert on things (merely an observer and player much…

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By Nic on 4 March 2010 at 8.50 am
Posted in Community, Insulin Pumps
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Free insulin pumps and consumables!

4 February 2010
9 Comments

OK, now that I’ve got your attention, I have a request to ask of you. (Sorry, there are no free insulin pumps and consumables…. but we are going to try to at least get the MoH to consider subsidising both, or just the consumables).

A friend of mine, Ruth Hill, is getting together an Application for Funding to the Ministry of Health for insulin pumps and consumables. Here is her message, below:

Right people. I URGENTLY NEED YOUR HELP. I want to make an Application for Funding to the Ministry of Health. I need emails/letters from as many people as possible explaining how your life has or would be drastically improved by the best Type 1 diabetes management out there…

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By Nic on 4 February 2010 at 10.02 am
Posted in Community, Funding, Insulin Pumps
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Bi-annual NZ insulin pumps update > February 2010

1 February 2010
4 Comments

Hi all – a lot of people come here to find out what insulin pumps are available on the NZ market. I’ve talked to all the NZ reps, and here is my latest six monthly update for you. [If you're viewing this from the home page make sure you click here to see all the pumps, as the summary cuts off after the Animas pump]

Animas 2020 (from NZMS)

1. Cost of pump (incl GST) $7,500 incl GST

2. Size of cartridges 2ml (200u)

3. Cost of cartridges $90 for a box of 10

4. Length of warranty 4 years

5. Top five key features Full colour screen; Largest screen (able to…

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By Nic on 1 February 2010 at 11.44 am
Posted in Insulin Pumps
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Pumping and pumping and pumping.

28 January 2010
3 Comments

When I got my new pump, Aaron was over and asked me if I was going to give it a name (Aaron and Andy name everything in their lives – their cars, even the different vege plants in their garden – it’s very cute). It hadn’t actually occurred to me prior to that conversation, and given that I’d had a baby about two weeks earlier I found myself a little devoid of ideas.

“Arnie!”, exclaimed my husband. We all spun around to look at him, none of us figuring out why you’d call your insulin pump Arnie.

“Because it’s pumping and pumping and pumping”, he said (in a bad Austrian accent).

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By Nic on 28 January 2010 at 8.37 am
Posted in Insulin Pumps, Slice of Life
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Guest blog: The new tan line

12 January 2010
6 Comments

Hi Everyone!

Hopefully you have all had a great break

Every year for our summer break, Andy and I like to head off somewhere remote for a good week or more to relax with some close friends before we have to start thinking about getting back to work and because we don’t have kids, we ALWAYS go camp.

The joys of camping are boundless I reckon. Sunshine, beaches, BBQs, a chillibin full of beer (and insulin), the road trip with it’s compulsory pies and gas station snacks, the music, feet on the dashboard, card games and scrabble. It’s got everything.

This year, we went and plonked ourselves 5 hours north of Auckland in Taupo Bay with another couple who were camping…

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By Aaron on 12 January 2010 at 8.00 am
Posted in Hypos & Hypers, Insulin Pumps, Slice of Life
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