Software is not for patients.

[idamtnboy]

It amazes me how often I know more about a product as a consumer than the so called professionals do.

I found that to be case when I was building my house, and it wasn't all high tech stuff either!

Why don't these people do their homework? When I was in a service profession, I read all the manuals and everything I could get my hands on, so I could do my job well. It seems that professionalism has gone by the wayside. Caveat emptor

One reason is they have half a zillion different conditions and variations of those conditions to deal with. As a patient we have ONE, or just a few, conditions to deal with. It's easier to learn more about less than more about more. You know the old adage, "Jack of all trades, master of none."

I'm not trying to excuse them, just trying to point out there is another side to the issue. And then of course you often have professionals, all equally qualified, who disagree about a specific issue.

[Cindy58]

ohammersmith,
Please check with your insurance about home sleep studies. Welmark Blue Cross Blue Shield is denying payment for my second home study (and two more from different people I know). I had two in the same coverage year. The one they don't want to pay for generated the data my machine paramaters are set up on. That is the angle I'm taking up with them, and the home study equipment provider. The first in-home study said I had 127 partial obstructions per hr. so I had an in-hospital study. That sleep lab was a diaster and said I didn't have OSA. I needed a "tie-breaker" and requested the second home study.

These #@%* insurance demands are a real pain in the butt But guess what? It's a lesson in courage and being assertive that I need. I've decided that I can push right back at them...nicely at first but with more raging force as needed.

Iowa has a "State of Iowa Insurance Division". They give permission for Insur. Co's to set up office in the state. Give your Ins Division a call. I think they would love to hear from you about this fraudulent action. They could give you some ideas of who to talk to about the DME double dipping.

Best of luck and keep us posted. What you find out could help others like me in a similar situation!
Cindy

[Cindy58]

robysue,
Thank you for mentioning CPAP-Xpress. CPAP equipment and supplies are all they sell, the business was started by a Respiratory Therapist. They are wonderful to work with, and always treat me with humor, understanding, and kindness!
And yes, some people learn more product information than others...it's sad but true.
ohammersmith... besure the DME you choose sells the fully data capable machine you want. The DME closest to me (ie. considered Insurance in-network) does not have a contract with ResMed. I went out of network in order to get the S9 I wanted. Still working on that one with the Ins.

Good Luck!
Cindy

[ohammersmith]

Cindy, I did, in fact, get the machine I wanted... I had to go to a different DME than I usually like. I had a bad experience with Apria a few years ago and it turned me off. Turns out they're less crappy than the DME that didn't get the right machine and neglected to mention that they were out of network. *ahem* Those were the guys who told me six years ago not to clean the tubing on my old Resmed.

Also will check into home studies... what does that entail? I assume different hardware than just the CPAP, because presumably they can't get an accurate AHI unless you're under pressure with controlled leaks... and therefore couldn't get a number for 'no pressure at all'. I'd like to get another study done, but there's no way I'm gonna justify the expense right now just because some a$$h0les don't want to give me my medical records.

BTW, good luck with that... clearly they screwed up if they said you don't have apnea at all. There's no way it goes from 'none' to 127/hr. That's craziness.

[ohammersmith]

Oh also, random thing I just found out... apparently there are local joints selling an S9 on craigslist of all places for about what I will end up paying Apria, including insurance. *sigh*

If only it could be a truly free market, they'd be $50 and sold at Walgreens right next to the humidifiers.

[roster]

Oh also, random thing I just found out... apparently there are local joints selling an S9 on craigslist of all places for about what I will end up paying Apria, including insurance. *sigh*

f only it could be a truly free market, they'd be $50 and sold at Walgreens right next to the humidifiers.

Careful, it may be a scam. See viewtopic/t58538/Auto-BiPap-Respironics-for-575.html

But I agree the FDA has this market very much overregulated. They need to back way off for the benefit of us patients and the purging of the "slime" from the supply side. "Slime" has trouble surviving in unregulated markets.

[ohammersmith]

Careful, it may be a scam. See viewtopic/t58538/Auto-BiPap-Respironics-for-575.html

But I agree the FDA has this market very much overregulated. They need to back way off for the benefit of us patients and the purging of the "slime" from the supply side. "Slime" has trouble surviving in unregulated markets.

Yep, same #. Did you ever find out if it was a scam, for sure?

[Emmy1]

One reason is they have half a zillion different conditions ... to deal with. As a patient we have ONE, or just a few, conditions to deal with. .... "Jack of all trades, master of none." I'm not trying to excuse them, just trying to point out there is another side to the issue...

True. But this is a dealer, not a doctor. She only sells 2 or 3 brands of machine, and this is the model they use for in home studies like mine. Its a machine she deals with on a daily basis. She should know this stuff. Its basic to the customer's comfort and success in sticking with the treatment. I can understand my doctor being uninformed, but not my dealer who is supposed to know the selling points if nothing else. Her lack of knowledge must be killing their profits.

By the way, I deal many health issues, so I'm juggling lots of balls, not just one or a few. My brain hasn't exploded yet! LOL!

When I started doing blood glucose testing for diabetes a few years ago I got a cable and software so I could download my numbers from my glucometer, and print them out for my doctor, diabetes clinic, and endocrinologist. They had never had a patient do that before and were totally shocked that I knew how. I asked if I could email them in, and they said they don't know how to go about reading them if I do. I told them its a simple PDF file. All I got was, "A what "

Go figure. Even people who deal with the equipment daily don't always know how to use it properly and to its fullest potential.

I guess I'd rather be in the know and in control, than depend on anyone else, especially when they clearly are in the dark about something that is vital to my welfare and health.

Type A, obviously.

[JOMOMA]

My husband got the Resmed 9 Elite with climate control. H5I humidifier, heated hose and the Swift FX nasal pillows.
I have an older Resmed 8 Autoset and have the software and cardreader.

I know how to download my charts and grafts. His uses an sd card.

Will the same software work? mine is about two years old.

Any tips I need to know.

He is VERY resistant to all this the man can repair and program linear accelerators but can't get his "gizzmo" as he calls it to work right for him.

He wants surgery and is trying to placate me with his feeble attempt at trying to get use to it.

Anyway I need to famaliarize myself with his machines and settings as well.

RN working in an ICU so I titrate and manage ventilators so I should be able to master this machine but need some help as far as manuals etc.

Thanks; Jo Ellen

[Emmy1]

... Full-on type-A control freak mode has been engaged... and you don't want to get near the spreadsheets I have when that happens, you'll have a hard time escaping the gravity well that they create....

LOL! Thanks for the laugh, I needed it!

I agree, we shouldn't have to become experts on this, but it looks like we have no choice if we want successful treatment and an improvement in our health.

I wasn't told to replace my mask either, just the filters. That was in the 90's, back when I had insurance. Now I don't and its all out of my husband's pension. I'm physically disabled and unable to work, but too young for pension and because I stayed home to raise a family I can't get disability. When the medical bills start pouring in, it really sucks. Spent $450 today on insulin. Have to buy my other insulin in 2 weeks. There goes another few hundred. Ouch!! This battle to stay alive isn't cheap, but it beats the alternative.

[idamtnboy]

One reason is they have half a zillion different conditions ... to deal with. As a patient we have ONE, or just a few, conditions to deal with. .... "Jack of all trades, master of none." I'm not trying to excuse them, just trying to point out there is another side to the issue...

True. But this is a dealer, not a doctor. She only sells 2 or 3 brands of machine, and this is the model they use for in home studies like mine. Its a machine she deals with on a daily basis. She should know this stuff. Its basic to the customer's comfort and success in sticking with the treatment. I can understand my doctor being uninformed, but not my dealer who is supposed to know the selling points if nothing else. Her lack of knowledge must be killing their profits.

Valid point.

When I started doing blood glucose testing for diabetes a few years ago I got a cable and software so I could download my numbers from my glucometer, and print them out for my doctor, diabetes clinic, and endocrinologist. They had never had a patient do that before and were totally shocked that I knew how.

The GP I was going to in Louisiana when I was first diagnosed w/ diabetes wasn't shocked, but quite pleased, when I presented him with tables and graphs of my BG readings. He put copies in my medical file. Repeatedly complimented me for my efforts at control and data tracking. My doc here in Idaho looked at the graph I brought in on my first visit and said don't bother. He wasn't interested in seeing them. He relies entirely on the every 4 month lab results. Kind of pissed me off. I never have had warm feelings toward him since.

The doc at the medical research facility in Baton Rouge where I was a test volunteer and where my diabetes was first diagnosed (back when the threshold was still 140, only weeks before being changed to 126) looked at one of my graphs one time and said if he were to cover up the dates on the x axis and show the graph to a colleague the colleague would probably think it was a meter repeatability test of one blood sample. I thought that was a pretty good compliment about both my control efforts and data tracking and graphing. I use a database program in my Palm Treo smartphone to track my data.

[idamtnboy]

My husband got the Resmed 9 Elite with climate control. H5I humidifier, heated hose and the Swift FX nasal pillows.
His uses an sd card.

Will the same software work? mine is about two years old.

Should, but to be on the safe side look for the link in one of Uncle_Bob's postings and install the latest version. The S9 is fairly new and there are some parameters in the Resscan program for the S9 that may affect how it displays the data. Or worse, Resscan may not recognize the S9 data at all without the newer parameters.

Just have hubby's card in an SD card reader when you start up Resscan. It'll find it and let you know. Create a patient file for hubby, open it up, and download the data. The data is added to the patient file that is open when it is downloaded.

You've probably seen the admonition elsewhere but just in case. If you want to keep a permanent record of hubby's data do a download at least once every 7 days. Choose discard when the dialog pops up giving you the choice to overwrite or discard. Also, you will prevent problems with data not being seen if you always make sure to download the data into Resscan AFTER the last sleep session before 12 noon AND BEFORE any sleep session after 12 noon.

[KatieW]

My husband got the Resmed 9 Elite with climate control. H5I humidifier, heated hose and the Swift FX nasal pillows.
I have an older Resmed 8 Autoset and have the software and cardreader.

I went from the S8 AutoSet to the S9 AutoSet, so am familiar with both. The biggest difference is that for the S9, the card must be in the apap to record data. Detailed data is recorded directly to the card. The S9 card is a standard SD card, so any SD card reader will work.

Download the latest version of ResScan, and create a new patient. On your 1st download it will ask if you want detailed data--say yes, and yes to remember it as the default.

I'm sure you will enjoy seeing the additional data that the S9 collects.

I'll PM with further info.

[robysue]

robysue,
Thank you for mentioning CPAP-Xpress. CPAP equipment and supplies are all they sell, the business was started by a Respiratory Therapist. They are wonderful to work with, and always treat me with humor, understanding, and kindness!

Good Luck!
Cindy

They are a great DME to work with and I'm glad that I walked in the door to talk with them after getting more and more frustrated with the phone calls I was making to the DMEs on the list my insurance company provided me.

Cindy---you in WNY by any chance?