Insulin pumps are the closest substitute available to your body's natural process of making and delivering insulin. The Diabetes Program at Dartmouth Hitchcock Medical Center offers insulin pumps to patients with diabetes, especially those who have problems with:
- Fasting blood sugars due to the dawn phenomenon
- Hypoglycemia (low blood sugar) awareness
- Post-prandial blood sugars (sugar levels after eating)
We offer an intensive educational program to train patients in using and living with an insulin pump. We work closely with a patient's regular doctor to:
- Measure how much the patient already knows about diabetes
- Educate the patient about the benefits and risks of using an insulin pump
- Discuss with the patient how the insulin pump will change his or her life, and the lives of his or her significant others
- Determine the patient's ability to meet the financial demands of pump therapy
- Train the patient in how to handle situations such as hypoglycemia, hyperglycemia, exercising with the insulin pump, temporary pump removal, and sick days, as well as any dietary changes
- Instruct the patient on how to make insulin dose adjustments
- Provide 24-hour access and frequent phone contact for the first month after the patient starts using the insulin pump
For physicians
For physicians, we provide:
- Education about the function of the insulin pump, for doctors who are not familiar with pump therapy
- Fine-tuning of a patient's insulin doses
- Updates regarding the patient's progress
- The assurance that the patient will be monitored closely, and will receive the needed education for using the pump
For more information about the Insulin Pump Program, contact the Lebanon Diabetes Program.