Having a backup plan in place for time off the pump is a cornerstone of pump therapy as it may be necessary to disconnect from your Tandem pump for a short period of time. For example, during contact sports, a day at the beach, a medical procedure, a pump malfunction or maybe you are just out of supplies. If you should want or need to be off your pump, be prepared with specific instructions and a backup plan from your healthcare provider. A backup plan ensures you have instructions and the necessary diabetes supplies to safely be off your pump.
A backup plan includes:
- Instructions from your healthcare provider on how to switch to injection therapy and how to resume insulin pump therapy.
- Rapid-acting and long-acting insulin
- Syringes or insulin pens/pen needles
- Your current pump settings (found in your pump Personal Profiles, or your pump download report)
Contact your healthcare provider for your personal back up plan. Some general guidelines include:
Important!
Remember, long-acting insulin remains active in your body for 12 to 24 hours or more once it is injected. If you have replaced your basal insulin with long-acting insulin injections, make sure all of the long-acting insulin has cleared your body before reconnecting to your Tandem pump and resuming basal delivery. Contact your healthcare provider for more information regarding the duration of your long-acting insulin and resuming basal delivery.
Tech tip: If you need to turn off your pump, make sure that it is put into storage mode.
ZD-000199_A
