Smart cards

sleepyhead63 · Post by **sleepyhead63** » Wed Jul 25, 2007 10:35 am

I had a card to check for compliance and my doctor took my card one visit and never returned it(this was months ago) and now I am thinking it would be a good idea to periodically check my progress. Now how would I go about getting a new one and also the reader and software? Would it be covered by my insurance or do I have to buy on my own and if so how much would they cost? One more thing is there a chart or something I could reference to base my numbers on?

Slinky · Post by **Slinky** » Wed Jul 25, 2007 10:53 am

Whew! If you chose the right picture you have one GOOD machine! The Resmed S8 AutoSet Vantage! Good going!

You can buy a data card at cpap.com for $18 for it. The software and cable reader are more difficult to find, one has to be quite innovative to find them anymore since Resmed changed their policy regarding both pricing of their equipment and the sale of their software by online DME suppliers. Local DME suppliers cannot sell the software and reader cable to patients even if their doctor scripts it for them.

However, the Advanced (or is it Detailed?) Patient Menu is easily accessed. The local DME suppliers won't program that access for you unless your ordering doctor includes instructions for them to do so.

No biggie. You can't change any of your settings regarding treatment from this menu. Just push the Left and Right buttons down and hold for 3-4 seconds. Efficacy Data will pop up in the LED window with Enter on the left and exit on the right. Button use from this menu on is pretty self-explanatory. IF you access this menu BEFORE noon, you will see that night's pressure, leak rate, AHI, AI and HI and from that menu you can also access the total hours you've used your machine, total nights you've used your machine and total hours you used it that night. You can also access the weekly, monthly, 6 months and yearly averages data once you've used your machine long enough for them to accumulate. IF you access this menu AFTER 12 noon there will be no data for that day, it will all have been rolled over into the accumulated averages. These machines work on an internal, 24 hour, noon to noon clock.

The Resmed S8 Compact and S8 Escape are NOT fully data capable machines. They record compliance data only but they look the same as the Elite and the Vantage. You have to read the model name on the top of your machine.

socknitster · Post by **socknitster** » Wed Jul 25, 2007 10:54 am

I believe the cards are available for around $10 at cpap.com. The reader I would purchase at twofactos in Hong Konk. I'm looking for link. It is the exact same reader, but only $30 including ship. You discard their driver (cd-rom) when it arrives and use the driver included in encore.

I'm sure someone will come along and be able to give you the correct link or you can search card reader. This comes along frequently.

The software is another issue.

Jen

Slinky · Post by **Slinky** » Wed Jul 25, 2007 10:58 am

Nope. Nope. Resmed does NOT use the EncorePro software. That is for the Respironics machines. I don't know if twofactors in HongKong sells the Resmed reader and software or not. It wouldn't hurt to check. Just be sure you are getting Resmed specific, NOT Respironics specific.

DreamStalker · Post by **DreamStalker** » Wed Jul 25, 2007 11:06 am

You can get the card, reader, and software from our sponsor right here while you can ...

https://www.cpap.com/simple-find-cpap-products/software

... before this guy

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makes a big stink about it and tries to stop them from selling it.

Slinky · Post by **Slinky** » Wed Jul 25, 2007 11:23 am

Oooops! Thanks for pointing that out, DreamStalker. I thought cpap.com was honoring Resmed's change in policy. JohnnyGoodman had posted a few weeks back that they would be honoring Respironics intent to discourage online DME supplier sales of software as well. Color me red-faced!!!! I wonder if cpap.com's policy to meet any posted (proof required) online price for same product will apply to these Resmed and Respironics software and reader cables too??

socknitster · Post by **socknitster** » Wed Jul 25, 2007 11:28 am

Ummmm. Sorry. Brain fart. The whole world doesn't use Respironics, Jen, Duh! Sorry!

Jen

Goofproof · Post by **Goofproof** » Wed Jul 25, 2007 1:10 pm

socknitster wrote:Ummmm. Sorry. Brain fart. The whole world doesn't use Respironics, Jen, Duh! Sorry!

Jen

Thet should be so Lucky. Jim

Guest · Post by **Guest** » Wed Jul 25, 2007 2:51 pm

Thank you so much for all your help and info! I do need some feed back because sometimes I wonder if I am doing any better. My doctor doesn't give any feed back at all, I asked him if my cpap has this capability and he told me no just for compliance, don't worry about anything as far as the data goes you won't understand it anyway.

Slinky · Post by **Slinky** » Wed Jul 25, 2007 3:54 pm

Something is fishy. All Resmed and Respironics autoPAPs are fully data capable. Either 1] your doctor doesn't know much about autoPAPs (eeeks! - then what is he doing ordering one for a patient?) or 2] you don't have the Resmed S8 AutoSet Vantage your sig says you do (all the Resmed S8s look alike) or 3] your doctor was less than truthful with you (which does NOT bode well for your relationship or care with him!).

I would sweetly tell this doctor that I am NOT a complete idiot and that either he or his staff have a responsibility to see to it that I DO understand my therapy. I would also ask how he intends to monitor my response to therapy or have the data to know how to make any adjustments that might be needed to provide adequate and effective therapy w/o more than just compliance data from my xPAP. By guess and by gosh just isn't very effective and is time consuming at best. If a diabetic can learn to monitor their insulin levels, certainly I am capable of grasping the fundamentals of my xPAP data. Diabetics are even allowed to adminster their own insulin.

Monitoring a patient's therapy by how they feel went out w/the dark ages. That's what they have blood tests, etc. for - and even fully data capable xPAP machines!! To take SOME of the guess work out of therapy.

Now go back to my earlier post and do the button combo I told you about and check your weekly data. Post those averages here and one or more of our forum members will explain what you don't understand yet.

Don't let your doctor treat you like an infant, you are an adult and a member of your medical "team". The most important member since you are the one who endures the consequences of any therapy or medical decisions made. Stress the 'TEAM'. And always keep in your mind that you and/or your insurance are paying this doctor so he is the employEE and YOU are the employER.

Stefernie · Post by **Stefernie** » Wed Jul 25, 2007 5:01 pm

Anonymous wrote:Thank you so much for all your help and info! I do need some feed back because sometimes I wonder if I am doing any better. My doctor doesn't give any feed back at all, I asked him if my cpap has this capability and he told me no just for compliance, don't worry about anything as far as the data goes you won't understand it anyway.

Liar.

At least yours GOT you a data machine.

Stefernie · Post by **Stefernie** » Wed Jul 25, 2007 5:02 pm

Slinky wrote:The Resmed S8 Compact and S8 Escape are NOT fully data capable machines. They record compliance data only but they look the same as the Elite and the Vantage. You have to read the model name on the top of your machine.

Stop reminding me.

Slinky · Post by **Slinky** » Wed Jul 25, 2007 5:22 pm

Sorry.

sleepyhead63 · Post by **sleepyhead63** » Wed Jul 25, 2007 7:24 pm

I do have the resmed S8 autoset vantage and evidently it is data capable so the next step is to buy the software, card reader and smart card. It looks like it would be about $200 or so through cpap.com. I don't want to sound cheap because it is my health at stake but is there any way of buying it any less expensive anywhere else,been on temp. disability lately and money is tight.

DreamStalker · Post by **DreamStalker** » Wed Jul 25, 2007 7:59 pm

sleepyhead63 wrote:I do have the resmed S8 autoset vantage and evidently it is data capable so the next step is to buy the software, card reader and smart card. It looks like it would be about $200 or so through cpap.com. I don't want to sound cheap because it is my health at stake but is there any way of buying it any less expensive anywhere else,been on temp. disability lately and money is tight.

You can get by without the software on that particular auto machine ... means a little more work for you in that you will need to manitain a record of your data.

Your machine provides efficacy data via the LED panel. You will need to go into clinician's menu to set data for daily values. Then you will need to set yourself up a spreadsheet to record your data each day from the LED panel.

The software offers convenience of not having to record the data onto spreadsheet. In addition, the software enables you to view "nightly" vlaues but those are not as important unless you want to figure out more details as to what time of night your AI/HI events occur and for how long they occur ... not really needed for tweaking your pressure for optimum treatment.

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