PDM Error
Scott Benner
The good news is that the Insulet CSR was helpful and the issue was resolved as quickly as possible. The not so good news can be read about over at ‘Daddy’s Blog’. The following is what happened when the handheld device that controls Arden’s OmniPod suddenly stopped working.
We aren’t normally the kind of family that splits up to do things. If we go to a movie we all go, when one of the kids has a sporting event or a performance we again, all attend. We do things together almost always. But on this day the boys went one way (to a batting cage) and the girls went another (to the Hannah Montana movie). Now when I say that I went one way and Kelly went the other, I mean it. The theater is 15 minutes away from our home in one direction and the batting cage was 30 minute away in the completely opposite direction. Couple that with the fact the Arden wasn’t with me and what we have is a situation that Murphy’s Law just couldn’t pass up.
It seems that Arden’s PDM (personal diabetes manager) experienced an error that left it inoperable, in need of a reset and incapable of reconnecting to the pump that it was currently attached to Arden. Kelly had just settled in to her movie seat, she tested Arden’s BG and delivered a bolus to correct a slight elevation. She estimated what movie snacks Arden would eat, called me and we agreed on an amount of insulin to give Arden for the food we thought that she would eat during the movie. Kelly set the PDM to the desired insulin amount and when she pressed the button to deliver the insulin, bang, the PDM just died. What transpired next is chronicled in a separate blog (link at the end of this blog).
Fast-forward to after the movie. We contacted Insulet, they walked us through reseting the PDM, which we did at the theater because we needed to test Arden’s BG as soon as possible and then we rushed home to change the pump.
The error was annoying, disruptive and concerning but in the end it never made me reconsider our decision to go with the OmniPod because it really is that freeing for Arden. When you’re dealing with technology sometimes things don’t work quite as expected.
To read about how a diabetes issue like this effects us personally click here.