[Diabetes-Talk] meters

Milton mota1252 at gmail.com
Sun Jan 17 23:30:20 UTC 2021 

Hi Lisa,

I once asked my doctor how often should I replace my Prodegy, and she said about 5 to 7 years. So, I ordered a new one from the NFB Independence Market for $75.00 as Medicare would not cover the meter.

Some have complained that the newer Prodegy meters have not been that great but this is the only one that was fully tested to meet the accessibility needs of most all diabetics.

I'm sure that if a need for a review is needed the Diabetes Action Network officers will look into this and have the NFB do a study. The Prodegy Voice review by the NFB was done during the time when Mike Freeman was the President of this Division.



-----Original Message-----
From: Diabetes-Talk <diabetes-talk-bounces at nfbnet.org> On Behalf Of Lisa Belville via Diabetes-Talk
Sent: Sunday, January 17, 2021 5:19 PM
To: Milton via Diabetes-Talk <diabetes-talk at nfbnet.org>
Cc: Lisa Belville <missktlab1217 at frontier.com>
Subject: Re: [Diabetes-Talk] meters

Hi, Milton.  Yes, yes, and yes.  <grin>   I actually got those excellent suggestions from this list last year and they get mixed results for me.


My doctor is very proactive about getting things prescribed, so I don't 
think she'll have any issues with prescribing more testing. She already 
wants me to test at least twice.  I'm hoping my difficulties getting 
accurate and timely results will help sway her.


Lisa



Lisa Belville
missktlab1217 at frontier.com

On 1/17/2021 2:19 PM, Milton via Diabetes-Talk wrote:
> To Lisa,
> Before you test your blood glucose with your Prodegy Meter, have you tried putting your hand, the one you will draw blood from, under warm water for a few minutes? Have you tried rubbing your finger from the base of the finger toward the tip to get blood to go to the spot where you will use your lancet to draw blood for testing? Also one other good thing is to wash your hands under warm water with soap to make sure it is clean?
>
> Hopefully these suggestions will help some.
>
> By the way, if you are considering getting on a CGM Continuous glucose monitoring system,, if you are a Medicare receipiant, you need to check with your doctor for a prescription. Medicare requires that you be testing your blood sugar at least 4 times a day.
>
> Let us know if you have further questions.
>     
>
> -----Original Message-----
> From: Diabetes-Talk <diabetes-talk-bounces at nfbnet.org> On Behalf Of Lisa Belville via Diabetes-Talk
> Sent: Sunday, January 17, 2021 9:51 AM
> To: Veronica Elsea via Diabetes-Talk <diabetes-talk at nfbnet.org>
> Cc: Lisa Belville <missktlab1217 at frontier.com>
> Subject: Re: [Diabetes-Talk] meters
>
> Hi, Veronica.
>
>
> thank you so much for explaining this to me.  I have been getting horrible results with my prodigy; Often the meter beeps to indicate it is testing and comes back with a blood sample is not enough message. Or, more commonly, it will beep as it should then there is an extra long pause and it comes back with a reading that I know can't be correct: 20 or 35 or 54.  I know this is dangerously low, but I'm conscious and coherent, so I immediately doubt the readings and try the process again on a different finger.  This whole procedure is time consuming, painful and frustrating.  I know there's blood.  I have my lancing device set for the sharpest stick and my fingers are bloody and I feel like the table I'm using is a crime scene.  What's worse is my fingers are getting rough, and that's effecting my sense of touch.  I thought it was something I was doing wrong, or maybe a bad batch of strips or low batteries.  But your description below is probably why things aren't working for me.
>
>
> I have an A1C test tomorrow, and a week later I'll be seeing my doctor. I'm going to push hard for an CGM, probably the Libra because it seems to be cheaper.  This whole thing has been stressing me out and things are already stressful enough without this process being more difficult than it has to be.
>
>
> Thanks again for making me feel better about this process.
>
>
> Lisa Belville
>
> missktlab1217 at frontier.com
>
> On 1/15/2021 4:35 PM, Veronica Elsea via Diabetes-Talk wrote:
>> Here's the problem with the Prodigy. First, it requires twice the
>> amount of blood as do the current meters used by sighted people.
>> And here's the main issue. When you touch your finger to the strip,
>> the blood has to not only go straight in but it has to follow a
>> channel around a corner. If you don't have a lot of blood, it won't go
>> around that corner and your reading will be way off. Way off! The
>> reason I know this is because my hubby and I took strips apart. My readings could vary more than 150 points.
>> This is a disaster when one is making insulin decisions based on that
>> reading. It's not fair to just call something user error when we have
>> no way of knowing that this had happened. In the instructions put out
>> by the NFB it says, no visual verification needed. But in the print
>> instructions that come with the meter, item number 3 says that the
>> user must verify that the yellow window is full of blood. It's sad
>> that in those early days, the NFB was more concerned about having its
>> name on the meter than the results given by that meter. I have been
>> using a FreeStyle Lite meter for 15 years now. No, it's not accessible
>> but my hubby and I made our own box. So yes, I'm spoiled. But I can trust what it says.
>> And I'm not just randomly trying to trash the NFB. I was told by the
>> NFB that the reason they hadn't lobbied more aggressively to get the
>> Prodigy covered by Medicare was that they couldn't really push for
>> coverage of a device with such a low level of efficacy.
>> So our organizations should advocate for CGM's for anyone who is blind
>> on the grounds that we have almost no good options for accurate
>> accessible meters. Just my opinion. Thanks.
>> Veronica
>>
>>
>> "Guide Dogs, First Hand", Veronica Elsea's classic album is now
>> available on iTunes, along with other music from her and from the Guide Dog Glee Club.
>> To learn more, visit:
>> http://www.laurelcreekmusic.com
>>                   Veronica Elsea, Owner Laurel Creek Music Designs
>> Santa Cruz, California
>> Phone: 831-429-6407
>>
>>
>> -----Original Message-----
>> From: Diabetes-Talk [mailto:diabetes-talk-bounces at nfbnet.org] On
>> Behalf Of Alan Lemly via Diabetes-Talk
>> Sent: Wednesday, January 13, 2021 1:34 PM
>> To: 'Diabetes Talk for the Blind'
>> Cc: Alan Lemly
>> Subject: Re: [Diabetes-Talk] meters
>>
>> Hi Jeanette,
>>
>> While I agree one needs to use a glucose meter that gives accurate
>> scores, I'm not going to condemn a meter that several folks on an
>> email list have said gave them variable scores. The fact is that blood
>> glucose scores can vary widely depending on what the person testing
>> has consumed and their other behavior. Never mind that operator error
>> can also enter into each person's experience. I don't know how many
>> times I've read about problems on numerous technology lists dealing
>> with both hardware and software where the ultimate issue ended up being operator error by the person posting.
>>
>> My own experience with the Prodigy Autocode meter has been excellent
>> for the years I've used it. And I never said I didn't care where a
>> meter's rating is. What I said was that I'm more interested in how a
>> meter is rated in terms of accessibility by those dealing with the
>> same accessibility issues I am and this is seldom possible. And I used
>> a couple of different meters during the years I was not visually
>> impaired and those meters were not updated. I personally think the
>> Prodigy Voice is the only meter that is fully accessible and can be
>> independently set up by a blind person and I believe those meters do
>> well what they were designed to do and don't require updating. Your
>> interpreting this statement to infer that I mean leave well enough
>> alone where accessibility is concerned is spurious reasoning and
>> incorrect. I believe our efforts would be much better employed by
>> working to get a fully accessible insulin pump than by arguing for updated Prodigy glucose meters.
>>
>> Alan Lemly
>>
>> -----Original Message-----
>> From: Diabetes-Talk [mailto:diabetes-talk-bounces at nfbnet.org] On
>> Behalf Of Jeanette Kutash via Diabetes-Talk
>> Sent: Wednesday, January 13, 2021 1:43 AM
>> To: 'Diabetes Talk for the Blind'
>> Cc: Jeanette Kutash
>> Subject: Re: [Diabetes-Talk] meters
>>
>> I've had such variability in my numbers that I don't trust the Prodigy
>> any more, and I know I am not the only one who says this. But this not
>> caring where it is rated bothers me. We need both; better meters that
>> get updated like those sighted people use, and greater accessibility.
>> This "leave well enough alone" is so often why people may not take us
>> seriously when we ask for greater accessibility.
>>
>> Jeanette
>>
>> -----Original Message-----
>> From: Diabetes-Talk [mailto:diabetes-talk-bounces at nfbnet.org] On
>> Behalf Of Alan Lemly via Diabetes-Talk
>> Sent: Wednesday, January 13, 2021 1:10 AM
>> To: 'Diabetes Talk for the Blind'
>> Cc: Alan Lemly
>> Subject: Re: [Diabetes-Talk] meters
>>
>> Well, I've had no problem with the quality of my Prodigy meter and I'm
>> much more interested in a meter's accessibility than where it shows up
>> in reviews by most who are not concerned with accessibility. And I'm
>> curious what sort of updates you expect for a meter that does what
>> it's designed to do and is fully accessible. I've been using glucose
>> meters for years and I don't recall any of them getting updated like a
>> smart phone or smart phone app. It would be nice to have a meter that
>> could transfer its readings to a well-designed app that was fully
>> accessible and allow review of past scores as well as transfer of
>> those scores to medical professionals. I see that the ReliOn that
>> you're touting has an app but 70% of its reviewers give it one star so
>> it has problems. I like that I can upload my Prodigy Autocode readings to Diasend where I can print the reports my endocrinologist needs.
>>
>> Alan Lemly
>>
>> -----Original Message-----
>> From: Diabetes-Talk [mailto:diabetes-talk-bounces at nfbnet.org] On
>> Behalf Of Dorothea Martin via Diabetes-Talk
>> Sent: Tuesday, January 12, 2021 9:04 AM
>> To: diabetes-talk at nfbnet.org
>> Cc: Dorothea Martin
>> Subject: Re: [Diabetes-Talk] meters
>>
>> Hello, Ed and Everyone,
>> To go on with what Ed said, the ReliOn Pro Voice is easily available
>> though hardly as accessible as the Prodigy Voice. However,
>> accessibility is not the whole story, since the quality of the meter
>> itself must be considered. The ReliOn meters show up near the top of
>> reviews, while Prodigy courts the bottom. We must also keep in mind
>> that the Prodigy meters, including the Voice, have not been updated in
>> years and are getting long in the tooth. I'm beginning to think that
>> if we must continue to use those inexpensive little glucometers with
>> small memories, we will also keep on having to face a trade-off
>> between the device's actual quality as a meter and its accessibility.
>> Dotty Martin
>>
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