I'm thinking about going on the Animas pump and wanted opinions/experiences about it. Thanks! :)
Love it! you can bolus straight from your meter.. :D
Citlin,
I have been using the Animas Ping for about 10 months. It is my first pump. It has its pluses and minuses. You can look at all the features on paper till you are blue in the face, however, what really matters is how user friendly it is. My suggestion to you (which I will be doing when this pump's warranty is up) is to try every pump you are interested in for at least 2 weeks, preferable for a month. If your doctor's office can't do this for you, contact the manufacturer's rep. in your area (ask your doctor who it is or go to their website). One of the frustrating things I found out about Animas, and assume its the same with other pump manufacturers, is that they do not issue updates to their products, unless its a critical update. Also, evaluate each pump's computer software, which I use to evaluate how well my diabetes is in control. Animas's software is adequate (mom always said "if you can't say something nice..."). Also, ask the pump representative when the new model is coming out. You don't want to get a pump and then find out 5 months later a new model is out and is much better. Right now I'm evaluating CGMs and Dexcom is the one I'm favoring. I know Animas's next model is going to be integrated with it, but not sure when.
Good luck,
Bill
while i got rid of the ping after a 3month trial, it wasn't due to the actual pump(i had site problems, less control than on shots, etc etc). i actually really liked the pump and the options it gave me. i did a bit of research about the ones available in canada(not a whole of a heck lot) and the ping was the most recent at the time and was had the most pros over the other pumps...especially since it uses a onetouch ping as the linking meter to pump(I love onetouch and was already using an ultrasmart for the last few years..the only difference between them is you can control the pump with the ping's added chip in the ultrasmart).
you can do a saline trial and see how you like the functions. a local rep will show up, give you about an hours worth of training and info on the pump, answer any questions or concerns and leave you for a week to two weeks to play with it and get used to it and check out the features, while you still take your shots.
I like my animas. Been on it since I started pumping 4 years ago. Their customer service as well as supply re-order folks are really nice and easy to contact. Thumbs up
I love my Animas pump just as much as I ever loved my Minimed. The reason I am with Animas now is how much better the company treated me. For me, the difference between their customer service was like night and day. For four years I struggled to get my supplies from Minimed. They blamed my insurance company for all the problems and eventually stopped returning my calls. As a result I had to make my sets last for a week or more and still ended up running out and going back on injections for weeks at a time. This happened every 90 days.
I switched to Animas almost three years ago and have not had one problem getting my supplies like clockwork. Also, when first getting an Animas pump everyone I talked to was extremely friendly. They were also all type one diabetics that wore the pump themselves.
As for the pump itself, I like that it is waterproof and has smaller insulin increments.
I have been on the ping for almost 10 months now. I haven't really had any problems at all. Customer service is great, although I've only had to call to reorder supplies I haven't had problems with anything else. My dad has had an animas pump for years! And I don't think either of us would ever go with any other company! For my dad, he just upgraded his pump to the ping a couple of months ago and it was such an easy process for him! Love everything about Animas.
Animas gets the thumbs up from me, as well. Okay, we all agree, WE LOVE ANIMALS! Wait, WE LOVE ANIMAS! There we go.