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13th February 2007
Pump School online 
- an interactive tutorial on how to use your new Minimed insulin pump
I was browsing around the internet last night and came across a really cool idea from Minimed.
When we were last at the hospital, one young woman was most reticent to get to grips with the pump, yet the pump
school now offers a way to learn about the basics of pump therapy and to see how easy all that button pushing could
really be.
It's easy to sign up to try out, it's free and it's open to anyone over the age of 13 - if you're younger than
that, mum or dad will have to sign up to it for you.
It's not designed to take the place of full training by your diabetic nurse, however it is a good way of getting
a flavour for what's involved in pumping and try it out in the comfort of your own home!
When Alissa first got her new Paradigm pump she had some training, but it was mostly in the differences between
her new pump and the old 508. Of course, it comes with a comprehensive, surprisingly user-friendly manual,
but sometimes a visual or video is easier to understand.
There's three main sections:-
- Self management skills - what you'll need to know about insulin pump
therapy
- Button Pushing - Understanding the buttons and how to use them, including the Bolus
Wizard™ Calculator, which makes insulin dosing so much easier and saves trying to do all those maths
calculations in your head!
- Starting on Insulin - a preview of what your Medtronic MiniMed Pump Trainer or health
care provider will be demonstrating to you during your hands-on pump training session
If you find it helpful, there's some simple multiple choice questions to check that you've understood what's
been explained. There's also a follow-up section to help you get the most out of pump
therapy.
It's helpful to learn some of the terminology before you get your hands on your pump - otherwise you'll be
struggling with concepts like basal and bolus rates and priming.
The pump school program also asks you to consider scenarios, such as having a high level following a
meal and what you would need to do about it - this is helpful for not only learning the terminology, but in feeling
confident as a pump user.
Really Useful Information
Believe me, when we first had Alissa's pump this kind of online learning would have been very valuable -
although we had the wonderful support of Susan Judge, our Minimed diabetic nurse, who helped us through - just
feeling that we knew how to handle everything before we started would have been such a help.
It's also full of information that's helpful to
any diabetic - like reprinting the American Diabetes Association recommendations for HbA1c levels and how they
correlate with average levels of blood sugar levels. For example, if you're HbA1c is 8, your average or
overall glucose level is 205 mg/dl or 11.5 mmol/l - yikes! Wish they told you this kind of thing at the
hospital clinic !
There's also some detailed information about what to do for a hypo - or hypoglycemia. This is far
more detailed and helpful than I can recall ever hearing from any medical advisor - whether that means I've
forgotten or was never told, who knows ?
As the risks of hyperglycemia are higher with the pump (there's no residual insulin in your body, unlike with
injections) , the hyperglycemia protocol which spells out just what to do if your level is high (above 250 mg/dl or
14 mmol/L) to help prevent ketoacidosis (DKA).
It's worth printing out both the hypo and hyper protocols and keeping them with all your diabetic supplies and
information. When we've faced a hyper, it's always difficult to recall what we're supposed to do and it's
great to have something written down which you can follow.
The diet information about "fatty foods" and how they affect your glucose levels is simple but useful - for
example, the fact that they can affect your blood glucose levels as much as 4-6 hours later and that they slow down
the absorption of carbohydrates.
I spent around 20-25 minutes on the Self Management section and was surprised to find that I learned some new
information and was reminded of things that I'd forgotten.
Why not try it yourself?
Whether you're new to the pump or an established user - this could be a really great way of taking a refresher
course. I know that I'll be recommending it to Alissa !
Check out how it could feel to use a pump and learn more about the benefits in your daily life at https://pumpschool.minimed.com/index.tpl
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