tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-43070232511870090052024-02-08T19:12:00.450+02:00sensotrend - making sense of diabetes trendsSensotrend is an automated diabetes diary. We eliminate the need to manually enter data to a logbook, and let diabetics choose the apps and gadgets that best suit their individual lifestyles to collect all the data required to manage their condition, automatically and easily.
Assihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06825954797042605085noreply@blogger.comBlogger56125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4307023251187009005.post-37749173172612648342018-11-14T01:08:00.000+02:002018-11-14T01:08:04.044+02:005 years mark<div style="font-family: "Helvetica Neue"; font-size: 12px; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal;">
Sensotrend published the first launch page for its products on World Diabetes Day, November 14, in 2013. We estimated to launch our service in early 2014. Things have not quite gone as we then thought they would.</div>
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This business is really tough. Our peers, other diabetes startups in Finland at the time, were Mendor, Modz, Quattro Folia, and later Femma5. None of them are operational at the moment, we are the only one left. And we’re still waiting to launch our product big time.</div>
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Why is that? Where did the other companies fail and why we have struggled so much? Each of the companies can probably best answer for themselves. It seems the simplified version of the problem is that there just is no viable and sustainable business model for self care apps in today’s healthcare industry. We also haven’t seen any of our international counterparts finding the keys to success.</div>
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We do see some light at the end of the tunnel, though. A few new companies have risen from the ashes of the failed ones. <a href="https://glucostratus.com/" target="_blank">Glucostratus</a> continues the legacy of Mendor, working with the business model Mendor found to be at least somewhat profitable. People from the core team for Modz are now working with <a href="https://dottli.com/" target="_blank">Dottli</a>, a diabetes app that was included in the Top 10 diabetes apps by market share with the most recent <a href="https://research2guidance.com/product/digital-diabetes-care-market-2018-2022-ready-to-take-off/" target="_blank">Digital Diabetes Care Market report</a> by Research2Guidance. (Yes, the market research company still keeps pushing diabetes as the most promising opportunity in digital health. Each report forecasts the final breakthrough for these apps to be just around the corner.)</div>
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The biggest light for Sensotrend came from the Finnish Ministry of Social Affairs and Health. We recently won an <a href="https://stm.fi/en/artikkeli/-/asset_publisher/stm-palkitsi-kolme-hyvinvointisovellusten-kehittajaa" target="_blank">app design competition for the Finnish national PHR</a>, and were awarded a 100 000 euros contract. That’s not enough to really develop and maintain a consumer grade product for a longer term, but when combined with our current revenue and other sources of funding is enough for us to finally bring our product to the wider market.</div>
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We see many other very promising signals as well, like how national PHR solutions are being launched on many markets, how big EHR vendors are opening their app stores with clearly defined business models, how mobile PHR solutions like Apple Health and Google Fit keep evolving, and how all the players are converging on a common technical specification, the HL7 FHIR.</div>
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We also finally see self care data being used by healthcare organizations on levels beyond just the primary care and patient appointments. This data plays a crucial part when organizations digitise their care paths, when they profile and triage their patients, and when they seek to improve the quality of their care and customer satisfaction. All of that seems to be slowly turning into a business opportunity.</div>
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What currently seems even more promising is how big of a buzzword Real World Data currently is for the big pharma companies. We see their interest in the data as a key ingredient in forming a sustainable business models for self care apps.</div>
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So, perhaps the final breakthrough for digital health and diabetes apps really is just around the corner. If it is, we feel we’re as ready as we’ll ever be to ride the wave. Even if that time is not just yet, we feel it’s now our turn to contribute big time, and to try and push the industry forward to where we all know it needs to go.</div>
Mikaelhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14574296530980054097noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4307023251187009005.post-78156889548635233982017-05-09T01:09:00.000+03:002017-05-09T01:09:56.421+03:00Uploading Medtronic pump data to Carelink with Mac OSX SierraI have heard people have had increasing difficulties uploading their data to Carelink.<br />
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Some times the site is just slow, for sure, but another thing seems to be the new permissions for Java applets in Safari web browser. In the Sierra version of OSX, Safari hides the "Run in Safe Mode" selection by default. You need to hold the Option key pressed down when selecting the permissions for the Carelink site in order to see it and to toggle it off.<br />
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<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-fQGWdw26kE4/WRDrmXvEmoI/AAAAAAAAAP0/ZNdPKwE0t-40esohXm-vDH4EiiT7LoTJACLcB/s1600/Screenshot%2B2017-05-09%2B01.04.07.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="250" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-fQGWdw26kE4/WRDrmXvEmoI/AAAAAAAAAP0/ZNdPKwE0t-40esohXm-vDH4EiiT7LoTJACLcB/s400/Screenshot%2B2017-05-09%2B01.04.07.png" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Access the Security settings from Safari -> Preferences, then select the Security tab. Then select Plug-in Settings...</td></tr>
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<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://3.bp.blogspot.com/-21rO5dTq6CE/WRDrmcCle0I/AAAAAAAAAPw/LG2KzDxCD0UZMGNqcUnoC6rMh2c5kz_iACLcB/s1600/Screenshot%2B2017-05-09%2B01.04.21.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="250" src="https://3.bp.blogspot.com/-21rO5dTq6CE/WRDrmcCle0I/AAAAAAAAAPw/LG2KzDxCD0UZMGNqcUnoC6rMh2c5kz_iACLcB/s400/Screenshot%2B2017-05-09%2B01.04.21.png" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Select Java from the list on the left. Select the Carelink site, and hold the Option key (alt) down when accessing the On/Off selection.</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://2.bp.blogspot.com/-kswXybPUEA0/WRDrmk9yP_I/AAAAAAAAAP4/iTntM2gpSVMXSQLAm9UHVg7ceoo1fx9lACLcB/s1600/Screenshot%2B2017-05-09%2B01.04.30.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="250" src="https://2.bp.blogspot.com/-kswXybPUEA0/WRDrmk9yP_I/AAAAAAAAAP4/iTntM2gpSVMXSQLAm9UHVg7ceoo1fx9lACLcB/s400/Screenshot%2B2017-05-09%2B01.04.30.png" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">You'll see the Run in Safe Mode selection on the bottom. Just untick it, and you're done.</td></tr>
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Let me know in the comments whether you still run into issues with the upload. I'm happy to help you further.<br />
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This guide is mainly aimed for people who used to be able to upload their data to Carelink, but can't do it anymore. If you have never uploaded your data, there's some more effort involved. You need to get Java enabled in Safari in the first place. Even then, I hope this guide will be beneficial in assuring people that yes, it really can be done.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4307023251187009005.post-83507771346786588572017-02-19T12:11:00.000+02:002017-02-19T12:12:16.521+02:00MedAngel One Monitoring the Temperature of My InsulinsMedAngel kindly sent me a new kind of a diabetes related gadget to try out, on the condition that I'd share my experiences with it. This gadget keeps me safe by guarding the temperature of my insulins.<br />
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I got the device just in time for a trip to the United Arab Emirates. That was just perfect, as I had been thinking of the temperatures. Finland, where I live, is currently quite cool, with temperatures usually below freezing point (0 °C, 32 °F). It's winter time in the UAE too, but it can still get quite hot there.<br />
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Extreme temperatures are bad for your insulin</h3>
I have had my insulin damaged by temperature a couple of times. I can't directly see it from my insulin, it remains a transparent liquid. I notice it when that liquid loses it's capacity to keep my blood glucose levels down, even when I change the cannula of my insulin pump system, when I dose more and more of it, and my glucose levels still keep rising. When I then finally refill the cartridge of my pump with fresh insulin, and my glucose levels finally start to come down, I know there was something wrong with the old insulin. And when I think back, I recall being outside at a park, for instance, where my pump may have been exposed to direct sunlight (in which case the black device absorbs the heat and becomes warmer than the surrounding air). Or I may have been out in Finnish winter, with temperatures well below freezing point, and some of that cold may have reached my pump, even though I try to protect it.<br />
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The insulin I'm carrying in my pump is one concern, and I wish the pump itself would have a thermometer and warn me if it gets too hot or cold. The other concern is with my reserve insulin, the vials I fill my pump cartridges from. When I travel, I need to keep that reserve insulin with me, and I need to protect it from extreme temperatures as well as I guard my pump. But it just may happen that the reserve insulin is in a bag that I leave to the car when stopping for a lunch, and the temperature in the car when I return from the lunch may be quite cold (Finnish winter) or hot (in the UAE, or even in Finland in summer time). Unfortunately, it's quite easy for me to make that error and leave the reserve insulin in the car. Most of my internal processing power when stopping for lunch is targeted to what I'm going to have for lunch, how much insulin I should dose to that, and when.<br />
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When something like that happens, I'd like to have a device like MedAngel One, next to the insulin. So far I have been lucky if I have even noticed my error. And even when I have, I haven't had a good idea about whether the insulin has really suffered.<br />
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<b>With MedAngel One, I can see what temperature the insulin has been exposed to, and for how long.</b><br />
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Lessons learned</h3>
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In the UAE, it never gets hot indoors. Every place is air conditioned, very efficiently. And not just indoors. Even bus stops outside are air conditioned, keeping the local atmosphere at the bus stop cool even when the air just a few steps away exceeds the human body temperature (around 37 °C, 100 °F). This lead me to not think about the heat too much.<br />
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When driving 2 hours from Abu Dhabi to Dubai on a nice, wide motorway it was really quite comfortable on the driver's seat. However, my luggage in the trunk was positioned so that the reserve insulin inside was on the top, and the top of the luggage was exposed to direct sunlight throughout the drive. Again, a situation I would have paid no attention to without the thermometer next to the insulins. But when I checked the MedAngel app later that day, I noticed the insulins had indeed been exposed to some moderate heat.<br />
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<a href="https://4.bp.blogspot.com/-twDL1zGvbp8/WKlKG3NSBQI/AAAAAAAAAOs/78rIQFVlc34REZ1HzWh7Ca9nsG_Mimb4wCLcB/s1600/Luggage.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="172" src="https://4.bp.blogspot.com/-twDL1zGvbp8/WKlKG3NSBQI/AAAAAAAAAOs/78rIQFVlc34REZ1HzWh7Ca9nsG_Mimb4wCLcB/s200/Luggage.jpg" /></a><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-nMeg06rAbsw/WKlJMiFq9-I/AAAAAAAAAOk/JTHKFwlZZto95JToubI8X7QAcpvJp_JFACLcB/s1600/Dubai.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em; text-align: center;"><img border="0" height="172" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-nMeg06rAbsw/WKlJMiFq9-I/AAAAAAAAAOk/JTHKFwlZZto95JToubI8X7QAcpvJp_JFACLcB/s320/Dubai.jpg" /></a><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-U72FbFt-Ssk/WKlnkXHfnwI/AAAAAAAAAO8/n10MpANLz90aFI2hQOtaaesYpgypYWPTQCLcB/s1600/MedAngelScreenshot.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="172" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-U72FbFt-Ssk/WKlnkXHfnwI/AAAAAAAAAO8/n10MpANLz90aFI2hQOtaaesYpgypYWPTQCLcB/s320/MedAngelScreenshot.png" /></a></div>
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<b>I'm a big fan of learning. So next time I'm loading the luggage in the trunk, I know to think of the positioning of the luggage, and of the position of the placement of the insulin within the luggage.</b><br />
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<a href="https://4.bp.blogspot.com/-J39i2_ATJv0/WKlsdxO8M3I/AAAAAAAAAPM/DeAjeIaFHMMUzRy6BNEZeD_kaocidBHsQCLcB/s1600/ScreenshotBathroom.png" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="200" src="https://4.bp.blogspot.com/-J39i2_ATJv0/WKlsdxO8M3I/AAAAAAAAAPM/DeAjeIaFHMMUzRy6BNEZeD_kaocidBHsQCLcB/s200/ScreenshotBathroom.png" width="112" /></a>The MedAngel One could have helped me even better, if I had let it. It could have alerted me in real time when the temperature within the luggage started to rise. However, the smartphone app that talks with the thermometer was only available on Android during our trip, and my primary phone was iPhone. I had an Android phone with me too, but during that drive it was packed in the same red luggage, and turned off. So I missed the opportunity to learn how it feels like when a guardian angel warns you before something threatening is about to happen, but I'm sure I'll get to learn that sometime in the future.<br />
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Back at home I learned yet another thing. When I unpacked my luggage, I left the small bag with the reserve insulin on a table in our bathroom. I know it's our hottest room, and should be warm to help keep it dry. But I had no idea it was actually warmer than 25 °C, and therefore not a good place to leave my insulin into.<br />
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Right now the gadget is in the fridge, guarding the storage temperature of my reserve insulins. The temperature there may drop too low too, as I learn happened with the founder of MedAngel. And there may be a power blackout while I'm away, in which case it will be super nice to be able to check whether that has potentially affected my insulins.<br />
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Final words</h3>
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I really like the device and the app. I had no trouble taking them into use, found every feature I was looking for with ease, and had no problems or hick-ups during use. This is what I call good design.</div>
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I know there are some similar products available too, like the <a href="http://www.likelle.com/" target="_blank">Likelle</a> containers with a premium look and price point. But for my preferences just a simple small gadget I can slip in with my reserve insulins works better.</div>
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I'm keeping mine, and am considering ordering another one. You can learn more about the device at <a href="https://medangel.co/" target="_blank">medangel.co</a>.<br />
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<small>Besides getting my own device for free, I have no affiliation or other ties to MedAngel.</small></div>
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Anonymousnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4307023251187009005.post-36201900108288382892016-09-15T08:36:00.000+03:002018-11-13T15:38:03.525+02:00Diabetes data platforms need competitionI received the <a href="https://www.diasend.com/docs/pressreleases/merger.pdf" target="_blank">recent news of Diasend and Glooko merger</a> with mixed feelings. My main concern is the openness of the joint platform. Will it be possible for other apps to use the data? Ultimately, will it be possible for people with diabetes to upload their data once to a safe location, and then use the apps and gadgets they choose to make sense of that data in a way that best supports their individual goals?<br />
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<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-lang="en"><p lang="en" dir="ltr"><a href="https://twitter.com/smansonsmith">@smansonsmith</a> Timing is uncertain unfortunately, but an API is part of our plan and we hope to come to an agreement with relevant partners.</p>— diasend (@diasend) <a href="https://twitter.com/diasend/status/536170725930201088">November 22, 2014</a></blockquote> <script async src="//platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script>
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Diasend have discussed opening an API for third party applications and developers for some time now. I have assumed they just lacked resources to make it available (although they never explicitly stated they would make that API open for anyone). Glooko, on the other hand, have never made any promises regarding an API. They do refer to a platform, but that's a much more vague term.<br />
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<a href="http://tidepool.org/news/tidepool-take-on-glooko-diasend/" target="_blank">In their take on the news</a>, Tidepool state that they don't consider themselves competitors to Diasend and Glooko. In a way, I'm disappointed. Competition is one of the key driving forces of innovation. We definitely do need that in the diabetes data management market. We need companies, nonprofits, and independent developers competing, for instance with the following:<br />
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<li>Who will be the first to build an open platform for all the data people with diabetes need to see together?</li>
<li>Who will be the first to release a truly universal uploader, supporting all the different hardware we use?</li>
<li>Who will create the best developer experience, attracting all the best apps to be connected with the platform?</li>
<li>Who will build the best architecture, combining security and privacy features while enabling easy sharing of data between stakeholders.</li>
<li>Who will build the best user experience, making it easy to use the above mentioned tools?</li>
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We've seen how <a href="http://www.nightscout.info/" target="_blank">Nightscout</a>, the open source project lead by independent developers on their free time, has helped commercial vendors bring their products to the market faster. Having the technology out there both validates the need for it and puts pressure on the companies to introduce their own solutions in order to not miss the train. In the case of Nightscout, it also put pressure on the regulator to approve the new commercially available technology in an accelerated procedure.</div>
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We do need the same with the diabetes apps ecosystem, with the data management platforms. I do believe that <b><i>once we see the first platform that really enables upload from the most used glucometers and insulin pumps, and makes that data available for all third party applications, we see a quantum leap of innovation</i></b>. We see that data actually being used. Used in many ways we currently dream of, and also in ways we cannot yet even imagine. I see the lack of such a platform as the biggest bottleneck of innovation currently.</div>
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At Sensotrend, we've from the beginning seen our own offering as a service that runs on Personal Health Record (PHR) platforms. On generic PHRs like Apple's Health and Microsoft's HealthVault, but also on PHRs focused on diabetes. We would really like to see Glooko, Nightscout, and Tidepool becoming such platforms. And we'd like to see them competing on who's the first one!</div>
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<br />Anonymousnoreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4307023251187009005.post-33660990132100830792016-09-02T18:09:00.000+03:002016-09-03T09:50:24.987+03:00<h2>
So long, Sports Tracker</h2>
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Last week, I had the privilege to attend to the Sports Tracker Innovation Night. The event was targeted to people like me, with a CTO role in startup companies, or something close to that. I went there with great expectations. Is this the moment they finally open their API?</div>
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The first time I asked <a href="http://www.sports-tracker.com/" target="_blank">Sports Tracker</a> for an API to access some of the exercise data was at Slush 2013, almost three years ago. I could hear from the answer that many other people and companies had asked for that too, and plans are currently being made for making an API available. I’ve repeated the question occasionally since then, and the answer has always been that the API is being planned, designed, or even built.</div>
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During the event, it became somewhat evident that an API is not being built. The presentation I saw (there were several presentations running in parallel) was about digital transformation, but mainly presented ideas on how to market and sell more goods to consumers through digital sales channels. The current owner of the Sports Tracker app is Amer group, the owner of many great brands like Atomic, Patagonia, Salomon, Suunto, Wilson, etc. It’s understood that within the group there’s a lot of know-how on how to market and sell goods.</div>
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I’m writing this on my way home from the <a href="http://mydata2016.org/" target="_blank">MyData2016 conference</a>. In the conference, there were numerous presentations on how the society is changing, and many on how consumerism is changing, too. People of today don’t want to be sold to. They want to get personalised experiences matching their values, and they want to be involved in creating value on initiatives and activities that matter to them. I see this as a really welcome development, and really want to believe in it.</div>
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Almost all other sports and wellness apps have already understood and are embracing the API ecosystems. When you expose access to data through publicly available interfaces, you no longer need to worry about offering that personalized experience to each and every different user or user group. The data produced by a sports app may be a key ingredient in something more meaningful, like in an athlete learning to train better or a person with chronic illness being able to manage his condition better. But the sports app cannot produce all the value alone. Especially not to both the athlete, and the chronically ill, and the myriads of other people with different needs, life styles and preferences. On the other hand, the value of the data from that app increases exponentially, when combined with data from a nutrition diary, smart scale, and perhaps medical devices.</div>
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Today, building an API should not be a big task. The first step for a wellness app would be to integrate with HealthKIT and Google FIT. In case that’s inconvenient for some reason, the app most likely uses and API already, to communicate with a cloud server. Opening that API for third parties requires little more than an OAuth2 implementation, for which there are plenty of implementations available. Of course, there’s the added cost of documentation and support. To get around that, an alternative is to open the API to aggregators, such as <a href="https://www.humanapi.co/" target="_blank">Human API</a>, <a href="https://validic.com/" target="_blank">Validic</a>, <a href="https://w2e.fi/" target="_blank">W2E</a>, or <a href="http://www.wellmo.com/" target="_blank">Wellmo</a>. You can even get the aggregator really interested by making an exclusive offer. It would be more limiting to developers wanting to use the data, but at least there would be a way.</div>
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Among Sensotrend’s current users, and among the potential users we have interviewed, Sports Tracker seems to be a really popular application. This may be due to it’s long history, and due to Nokia being so dominant in the Finnish handset market at one point in time, and Sports Tracker being the most highly acclaimed sports app at that time, on that platform. We’ve gotten many requests to support Sports Tracker in our app. This far, we have asked those users to be patient, and wait until the API gets released or the app gets integrated to HealthKit and Google FIT.</div>
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From today on, we’re changing that message. It’s evident that an API is not coming in any foreseeable future. People who are interested in seeing their data in our service, or in any other service for that matter, should instead select Endomondo, Strava, Runkeeper, Moves, or almost any other app that gets the value of open APIs.</div>
<div class="p2">
<br /></div>
<div class="p1">
I’m a long time user of Sports Tracker myself, and changing to another app requires some effort. Just selecting the right one from the ones listed above needs some research. However, the longer I keep using Sports Tracker, the more I feel I’m being left out of opportunities to learn, and to use the data in meaningful ways. And the bigger the effort to transfer the data manually to another platform, if I ever choose to.</div>
<div class="p2">
<br /></div>
<div class="p1">
It’s supposed to be my data. I should be able to use it in the ways I want to.</div>
<br />
<div class="p2">
<br /></div>
Anonymousnoreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4307023251187009005.post-45995270853373566012016-01-06T17:12:00.000+02:002016-01-06T17:12:36.405+02:00Frustration with EnliteI just disabled all alarms and the SmartGuard feature of the pump.<br />
<div>
<br /></div>
<div>
I have great trouble getting the Enlite sensor to be accurate. Maybe it's just me, maybe the sensor finds my tissue hard to read, maybe I'm not calibrating it right, maybe there was something off in the manufacturing or transportation of the particular batch of sensors. The sensors just keep giving me numbers that are way off from what my glucose meter says.<br />
<br /></div>
<div>
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-Uk8sZMICaYE/Vo0k18oWhbI/AAAAAAAAANo/oQzrwhq-q3I/s1600/sensor.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="320" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-Uk8sZMICaYE/Vo0k18oWhbI/AAAAAAAAANo/oQzrwhq-q3I/s320/sensor.jpg" /></a>
<a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-qkTAgIZwzQw/Vo0k28S-ljI/AAAAAAAAANw/KNCi9EhHp1c/s1600/meter.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-qkTAgIZwzQw/Vo0k28S-ljI/AAAAAAAAANw/KNCi9EhHp1c/s320/meter.jpg" width="122" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">At 10 am, when I woke up, the pump told me the sensor reads my glucoses at stable 3.8 mmol/l and the SmartGuard feature has been activated to save me from going too low. I did not feel low at all, so checked with the meter. It said 9.9 mmol/l. And 10.4 mmol/l when I measured again. And after washing my hands carefully, still 10.2 mmol/l. The real glucose level was clearly around 10 mmol/l. I dismissed the SmartGuard to resume the insulin flow, and injected some insulin to bring my glucoses down. I did not calibrate at this point, as I was sure the calibration that far from the sensor reading would be rejected by the transmitter. I felt a bit frustrated, as I thought the SmartGuard action of the night was likely the reason for the high level. It may also be that my glucose levels had really been low and then bounced back up due to my liver releasing some glucose into my bloodstream just before I woke up, so the sensor just did not have time to catch the change.
<br />
<br />
An hour later (at 11:12), just before breakfast, my meter told me I was at 6.9 mmol/l, so I bolused accordingly. Again I did not calibrate, as although the meter reading was now much closer to that of the sensor's (5.2 mmol/l), there was an downward arrow in display, so I knew my glucoses were still dropping, a bad time to calibrate. Shortly after, the pump buzzed and told me that insulin delivery had been stopped again, to save me from going too low. I needed to dismiss the SmartGuard again, as I knew I wasn't that low, and was currently eating, which would rather bring my glucoses up soon. In addition to that, it took me a while to find the amount of bolus insulin that had been injected (only 0.15 units -- the bolus delivery rate of the 640G is really, really slow!), and even longer to find the real amount that should have been injected.
<br />
<br />
While I can understand the logic the sensor and the pump used, and acknowledge I'm not yet familiar with the menu system and that's why it takes me time to get around and perform some actions, I became frustrated. It felt I was just fighting an enemy, rather than working together to treat me in the best possible way.</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
</div>
<div>
<br />
I have used the Dexcom G4 CGM for more than a year, on and off. Before that I occasionally got a CGM (either Dexcom or Medtronic one) from my clinic for a week. Throughout this time, I've gotten better results from the Dexcom. 90% of the time, it shows what I expect when calibrating it (that is, within 15% of the reading of my glucose meter). And 90% of the time it's off, it's easy for me to see, in retrospect, the point when it got off the track and also back on track. Either I calibrated when my glucose levels were changing rapidly, or I probably slept on it, causing the so called '<i>pressure low</i>'.</div>
<div>
<br /></div>
<div>
With the Enlite, I have never gotten the same feeling. I have no idea why it behaves the way it does.</div>
<div>
<br /></div>
<div>
When searching the internet, I find I'm not the only one with these issues. See for instance the end part of this review: <a href="http://www.healthline.com/diabetesmine/medtronic-minimed-connect-review">http://www.healthline.com/diabetesmine/medtronic-minimed-connect-review</a>.<br />
<br />
I also had a short discussion about the issues in Twitter.</div>
<div>
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" lang="en">
<div dir="ltr" lang="en">
<a href="https://twitter.com/scottleibrand">@scottleibrand</a> <a href="https://twitter.com/mrinnetmaki">@mrinnetmaki</a> I've heard some people say the new Enlite is dramatically better, some claim worse than old. Which is odd...</div>
— Sulka Haro (@sulka) <a href="https://twitter.com/sulka/status/681974052551061504">December 29, 2015</a></blockquote>
<script async="" charset="utf-8" src="//platform.twitter.com/widgets.js"></script>
</div>
<div>
<br /></div>
<div>
Anyway, for a couple of days, at least, I don't let the Enlite sensor interfere with my treatment. I keep wearing the sensor, and keep watching its readings. I hope I can better learn the ways it works, so we can work better together. I already got some advice from both a local representative and a peer support group:</div>
<div>
<ul>
<li>Calibrate at least 3 times within first 5 hours after inserting the sensor.</li>
<li>Only calibrate, if bg/ISIG is above 0.14 and below 0.44, applies when bg is in mmol/l).</li>
<li>Pay attention to the insertion site.</li>
<li>Try inserting the sensor first, connecting the transmitter hours later.</li>
</ul>
<div>
I really want to learn to trust the sensor and the system. For me, the SmartGuard feature of the Medtronic Minimed 640G is a really promising step towards an artificial pancreas. A system that would eventually do all the micro management required to control my glucose levels for me. But there's no way I'm giving that responsibility to a system I don't fully trust and understand.</div>
</div>
<div>
<br /></div>
<div>
<br /></div>
<div>
Finally, I ask you to remember that in this blog I share my experiences when and as I face them. I may be totally in love with the system next week.</div>
Anonymousnoreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4307023251187009005.post-15524543774766919682016-01-04T12:10:00.001+02:002016-01-04T20:23:15.173+02:00Will I use the bolus calculator of the Medtronic Minimed 640G?I have been using the Accu-Chek Spirit Combo pump system for five and a half years. I have been really happy with its bolus calculator feature.<br />
<br />
When I first started pumping, I was offered a choice between Accu-Chek, Animas, and Medtronic pumps. I chose the Spirit Combo as it's meter could be used as a remote controller for the pump. This means whenever I measure my blood glucose, I can immediately also dose the right amount of insulin, without having to reach for another device. I still think this is a winning feature.<br />
<br />
After having used the system for some time I came to appreciate the embedded bolus calculator too. Without the bolus calculator, I would often get too much insulin when correcting a high blood glucose. For instance, if in the morning my sugars would be high, I'd take some additional insulin for my breakfast bolus, to bring them down. Then I'd measure my blood glucose again in one and a half hours, and see that it's even higher. So I'd inject some more insulin. One and a half hours from that I'd measure again, and find that my sugars are still high, so I'd start to wonder whether there's something wrong with either the insulin or the cannula, but inject some more insulin to make sure. Less than an hour from that, my sugars would come crashing down, and I'd be trembling in an episode of hypoglycemia.<br />
<br />
I did not really notice that pattern back then. But the bolus calculator taught me patience. When I'd check my glucose one and a half hours from breakfast, it would tell me <i>"OK, your sugars are still high, but that's to be expected after the breakfast, remember? There are still many units of insulin in effect in your body, the situation is being taken care of."</i> And an hour and a half from that, when I'd be frustrated again, it would remind me that yes, the insulin I have taken to lower the high reading is still working and already bringing the glucoses down, I don't need any extra insulin.<br />
<br />
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-GLBcnB2VOno/VopDMvZpVfI/AAAAAAAAANI/D6NoTA7OAjk/s1600/20140517_105143.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="300" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-GLBcnB2VOno/VopDMvZpVfI/AAAAAAAAANI/D6NoTA7OAjk/s400/20140517_105143.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Here the bolus calculator reminds me that I still have 1.2 units of insulin on board to bring that 8.9 mmol/l down to target level, I only need 0.2 units more (added to the 6.9 units I need to cover the 55g of carbs in my meal) to make it perfect. Without that reminder I would most likely be frustrated that the reading is still high and dose some more correcting insulin that would then cause a hypo later on.</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<br />
The bolus calculator has really helped me to avoid many lows, and to be less frustrated when waiting for the insulin to take effect. I would really like to continue using it.<br />
<br />
In the Medtronic 640G, the pump system I'm currently trying out, there is no bolus calculator in the meter. The glucose meter does work as a remote controller, meaning you can set a bolus with it, but when you do that, neither the pump or the meter know how much insulin you took for the meal you were about to eat, and how many units of the total were dosed to correct a high. So after one and a half hours, there's no tool showing you that everything is going on just as planned, no need to panic and adding more insulin to the system does not benefit at all.<br />
<br />
This is one of the things I'll be paying attention to when considering the switch. Will I get used to handling two devices (both the meter and the pump)? Or is it just too convenient to set the bolus with the meter? Do I really need the help of the bolus calculator anymore, or have I learned my lesson already and can think things through before stacking a dose after dose of insulin?Anonymousnoreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4307023251187009005.post-80490659215532213072015-12-29T13:30:00.000+02:002015-12-29T13:30:05.329+02:00When to test a new pump?I was originally supposed to start with the Medtronic pump just before Christmas. Christmas is a challenging time for people with type 1 diabetes, with plenty of food we only encounter once a year and therefore don't necessarily know how it affects our glucose levels. And more sitting and lying around than usual. With more than just one occasional treat. So it would have been a good time to challenge the new pump, see what it can do under those circumstances. And, I would have had plenty of free time to play around with it.<br />
<br />
However, Medtronic Finland did not get the pump on time. There had been a software update to the pump, causing something in the product code to be changed, which caused some hiccups to the delivery.<br />
<br />
Medtronic kindly asked whether I'd like to get a demo pump for Christmas time, so I could play around with it and learn the features, but not yet fill it with insulin and connect it to myself. I thought this to be too much of a hassle, as I still needed to operate my old pump. I'd rather make the switch once the real pump arrived.<br />
<br />
So we started after Christmas, when I returned to work. It's kind of fair too. It may be easier for the new pump to convince me of its capabilities under more regular circumstances.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4307023251187009005.post-25661435240859419992015-12-28T17:43:00.002+02:002016-01-04T12:53:58.914+02:00Medtronic 640GI'm now connected to a new pump, the Medtronic 640G.<br />
<br />
And here's the disclaimer: I signed a blogger contract with Medtronic.<br />
<br />
Signing the contract was not really required of me to get the pump. I have discussed my need for a new pump with my doctor, and she has indicated I have a choice between the three pumps they can offer: the Accu-Chek Spirit Combo, Animas Vibe, or the Medtronic 640G. However, I wasn't sure which pump I'd prefer.<br />
<br />
So I asked Medtronic whether they could provide me with a sample so I could get to try it in real life. They said the easiest way would be to get it under the blogger contract, which actually sounded good to me, since I've felt I should be more active with this blog. Now there would be a reason to write a post every once in a while.<br />
<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-8XjQFtIzSHg/VopPHcTlI8I/AAAAAAAAANY/iONjlkbIzTs/s1600/SmartGuard.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="213" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-8XjQFtIzSHg/VopPHcTlI8I/AAAAAAAAANY/iONjlkbIzTs/s320/SmartGuard.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
<br />
So you may consider any upcoming posts about the Medtronic 640G as advertisement, if you wish. However, I'll do my best to record both the good and the bad experiences.<br />
<br />
<br />Anonymousnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4307023251187009005.post-26464960890008349292015-08-05T09:17:00.000+03:002015-08-05T09:17:00.315+03:00Two years later...The first "<a href="http://blog.sensotrend.com/2013/08/hello-world.html">Hello World</a>" post in this blog was published exactly two years ago. Personally, I face this day with mixed feelings.<br />
<br />
Two years ago, I thought we'd be much further by now. I imagined us launching the first version of our service early in 2014, then focusing on customer acquisition and growth, and by this time already playing with big data algorithms on all the data we had helped collect and bring together. However, due to challenges with growing the team, financing, the healthcare market, and demonstrating true value from our service (all nicely intertwined), we haven't even publicly launched our service yet.<br />
<br />
On the other hand I think we have been extremely lucky and successful. After all, two years is a long time for a startup to even survive. And in this time, we've received an incredible amount of support and positive feedback. We've learned a ton about running a company, about the startup scene, and about healthcare market, and made dozens and dozens of really valuable connections.<br />
<br />
Most importantly, with the little resources we've had, we've managed to get our service in trial use in a public healthcare institution. Today, we're taking in the second batch of trial users.<br />
<br />
Our service will help them, and their nurses and doctors, in viewing all relevant data from their medical devices and wellness apps together, and in making sense of diabetes trends.<br />
<br />Anonymousnoreply@blogger.com033100 Tampere, Suomi61.4981508 23.76102539999999445.5557458 -17.547568600000005 77.4405558 65.0696194tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4307023251187009005.post-30552217605972127872015-05-17T12:18:00.000+03:002019-09-06T11:41:30.791+03:00Continuing ConnectionsThe topic of this last day of <a href="http://www.bittersweetdiabetes.com/2015/05/diabetes-blog-week.html" target="_blank">Diabetes Blog Week</a>, Continuing Connections, reminds me of my last post of last year's week, the<br />
<a href="http://blog.sensotrend.com/2014/05/diabetes-thought-for-day.html">Diabetes Thought For the Day</a>.<br />
<br />
<blockquote>
The very first inspiration for Diabetes Blog Week was to help connect our blogging community, and that continues to be the most important reason it's held every year. So let's help foster and continue those connections as we wrap up another Dblog Week. Share a link to a new blog you've found or a new friend you've made. Or pick a random blog off of the Participant's List, check it out and share it with us. Let's take some time today to make new friends.</blockquote>
At the end of last years Diabetes Blog Week I implemented a simple web page that redirects the visitor to a random post of all the posts from all the participants of the week. I have been using the service myself, and found many new voices within the community. I'll be updating the contents with this year's entries soon, and welcome you all to try it out at <a href="https://www.sensotrend.com/ThoughtForTheDay/" target="_blank">sensotrend.com/ThoughtForTheDay/</a>, whenever you feel like you could use some peer support or want to see diabetes through someone else's eyes.<br />
<br />
<a href="http://www.bittersweetdiabetes.com/2015/05/diabetes-blog-week.html"><img border="0" src="https://farm9.staticflickr.com/8772/16529245533_9739d501a5_o.jpg" style="width: 100%;" /></a>Anonymousnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4307023251187009005.post-30115578008299198842015-05-16T08:30:00.000+03:002015-05-16T08:30:00.050+03:00FavoritesToday's <a href="http://www.bittersweetdiabetes.com/p/2015-diabetes-blog-week-topics-posts.html" target="_blank">Diabetes Blog Week</a> topic is Favorites and Motivations.<br />
<blockquote>
If you have been blogging for a while, what is your favorite sentence or blogpost that you have ever written? Is it diabetes related or just life related? If you are a new blogger and don't have a favorite yet, tell us what motivated you to start sharing your story by writing a blog?</blockquote>
My own favorite is the one from very early on, the post on whether to <a href="http://blog.sensotrend.com/2013/08/to-compete-or-to-collaborate.html">Compete or Collaborate</a>. The main message is still the way I see diabetes technology needs to be developed. There are so many people with diabetes, and so many different needs. We need a lot of different devices and apps, so that each of us can choose the tools that best suit our individual lifestyles. At the same time, we need cooperation and open interfaces, so that all those different apps can use the data from glucose meters, insulin pumps, and continuous glucose monitors, enabling the best possible combination for their users. All of this is nowadays further emphasized by the <a href="http://www.healthline.com/health/diabetesmine/innovation/we-are-not-waiting" target="_blank">#WeAreNotWaiting</a> movement.<br />
<br />
What about your favorites then? The most read post of this blog is <a href="http://blog.sensotrend.com/2014/05/the-exciting-state-of-diabetes.html" target="_blank">The Exciting State of Diabetes Technology in 2014</a>.
<br />
<a href="http://www.bittersweetdiabetes.com/2015/05/diabetes-blog-week.html"><img border="0" src="https://farm9.staticflickr.com/8772/16529245533_9739d501a5_o.jpg" style="width: 100%;" /></a>Anonymousnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4307023251187009005.post-59679556298997429502015-05-14T19:51:00.001+03:002015-05-14T19:51:52.914+03:00ChangesToday's <a href="http://www.bittersweetdiabetes.com/2015/05/diabetes-blog-week.html" target="_blank">Diabetes Blog Week</a> topic is Changes.
<br />
<blockquote>
Today let's talk about changes, in one of two ways. Either tell us what you'd most like to see change about diabetes, in any way. This can be management tools, devices, medications, people's perceptions, your own feelings – anything at all that you feel could use changing. OR reflect back on some changes you or your loved one has seen or been through since being diagnosed with diabetes. Were they expected or did they surprise you?</blockquote>
My first thought was, of course, to write about the tools and devices, and all of #WeAreNotWaiting that's currently happening. And all the development that has happened in one year after I wrote about <a href="http://blog.sensotrend.com/2014/05/the-exciting-state-of-diabetes.html">The Exciting State of Diabetes Technology in 2014</a>. But then again, that would have been too easy for me.<br />
<br />
Today, I'll rather write about my relationship with, or attitude towards my diabetes. There have been some noticeable changes.<br />
<br />
As I wrote in <a href="http://blog.sensotrend.com/2013/08/making-sense-of-trends-part-12.html">one of the earliest posts in this blog</a>, I first saw diabetes as a friend, telling me to take better care of myself. Later on, our once happily intense relationship cooled down a bit, as I concentrated more on other things in life.<br />
<br />
Right now me and my diabetes are closer than ever. I'm the founder of a startup creating self-care tools for people with diabetes, and I think about diabetes very intensely, literally each and every day. You might say diabetes and the best possible treatment for it has become my life's purpose.<br />
<br />
I think it's very important for all of us to understand that the relationship between people with diabetes and their condition is changing continuously. That is yet another reason why we need to have a wide array of tools and methods for our treatment.<br />
<br />
We have different priorities and different challenges at each point of our lives. No one solution fits all.<br />
<br />
<a href="http://www.bittersweetdiabetes.com/2015/05/diabetes-blog-week.html"><img border="0" src="https://farm9.staticflickr.com/8772/16529245533_9739d501a5_o.jpg" style="width: 100%;" /></a>Anonymousnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4307023251187009005.post-25231607484218325512015-05-13T11:56:00.001+03:002015-05-14T19:52:25.775+03:00Clean It OutThis is by far the most difficult topic of <a href="http://www.bittersweetdiabetes.com/2015/05/diabetes-blog-week.html" target="_blank">Diabetes Blog Week</a> for me this year.<br />
<blockquote>
Yesterday we kept stuff in, so today let's clear stuff out. What is in your diabetic closet that needs to be cleaned out? This can be an actual physical belonging, or it can be something you're mentally or emotionally hanging on to. Why are you keeping it and why do you need to get rid of it?</blockquote>
To get some inspiration, I read through the <a href="http://www.blenza.com/linkies/links.php?owner=dblogweek&postid=30Apr2015b" target="_blank">entries already posted for this topic</a>. Surprisingly many of those are about all the supplies us people with type 1 diabetes need to store and use. Actual physical things in an actual physical closet.<br />
<br />
My supplies take up space too. I put some effort into keeping them organized, and rarely have problems with the sheer volume of the supplies. What gets to me, however, is the way they are packaged. One thing in particular, are the user instructions. I get my tests strips in a package of 10 containers; one container of 50 strips lasts for around a week. Why does each one of them come with its own user instructions? And my infusion sets too, for each pack of 10 I get 2 different booklets.<br />
<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-Rg0lRVb_K0k/VVMQYS3T8-I/AAAAAAAAAMo/G7-KnV2nHnI/s1600/test-strips.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="178" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-Rg0lRVb_K0k/VVMQYS3T8-I/AAAAAAAAAMo/G7-KnV2nHnI/s320/test-strips.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
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<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-PDozDbw5cZU/VVMQcNE-CEI/AAAAAAAAAMw/8YhAyjXGBxA/s1600/cannulas-instructions.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="181" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-PDozDbw5cZU/VVMQcNE-CEI/AAAAAAAAAMw/8YhAyjXGBxA/s320/cannulas-instructions.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
<br />
<br />
All these instructions I just throw away immediately. It's just so much waste, over years and years of use. Couldn't they rather make some beginners set that's available when you first get your pack of certain type of supplies? And then all the subsequent packages would contain just the essentials.<br />
<br />
Yes, I am aware of some of the regulation that's in place for patient safety. But in this particular case, with consumables I use day in, day out, for many years, I don't really see the benefit of having to immediately discard so many user instructions.<br />
<br />
We often demand a lot more. Better devices, more accurate test strips, sensors for CGMs, etc. When someone asks me what I could do without and where would it be possible to save some cost, I say the user instructions for the everyday consumables.<br />
<br />
<a href="http://www.bittersweetdiabetes.com/2015/05/diabetes-blog-week.html"><img border="0" src="https://farm9.staticflickr.com/8772/16529245533_9739d501a5_o.jpg" style="width: 100%;" /></a>Anonymousnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4307023251187009005.post-21464419886404678672015-05-12T10:46:00.000+03:002015-05-14T19:52:25.771+03:00Nurses DayToday is the second day of <a href="http://www.bittersweetdiabetes.com/2015/05/diabetes-blog-week.html" target="_blank">Diabetes Blog Week</a>, with the topic Keep It To Yourself:<br />
<blockquote>
Many of us share lots of aspects of our diabetes lives online for the world to see. What are some of the aspects of diabetes that you choose to keep private from the internet? Or from your family and friends? Why is it important to keep it to yourself? (This is not an attempt to get you out of your comfort zone. There is no need to elaborate or tell personal stories related to these aspects. Simply let us know what kinds of stories we will never hear you tell, and why you won't tell them.)</blockquote>
Since this is also the <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/International_Nurses_Day" target="_blank">International Nurses Day</a>, I'd like to express my gratitude to all the diabetes nurses and certified diabetes educators (CDE's) who have helped and continue to help me achieve the best possible treatment, and at the same time encourage me to lead a life that's not all about treating my chronic condition. You have all been so amazing!<br />
<br />
So, I wish nobody will ever hear me brag that I've achieved any good treatment results just by myself. The support from my loved ones, from my nurses and doctors, and from the technology I have access to are the key ingredients that I couldn't cope without.<br />
<br />
<a href="http://www.bittersweetdiabetes.com/2015/05/diabetes-blog-week.html"><img border="0" src="https://farm9.staticflickr.com/8772/16529245533_9739d501a5_o.jpg" style="width: 100%" /></a>Anonymousnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4307023251187009005.post-64774981488354631102015-05-12T10:18:00.002+03:002015-05-14T19:52:25.792+03:00I CanIt's <a href="http://www.bittersweetdiabetes.com/2015/05/diabetes-blog-week.html" target="_blank">Diabetes Blog Week</a> again!<br />
<br />
This year, the topic for the first day was the empowering I Can.<br />
<blockquote>
Lets kick things off this year by looking at the positive side of our lives with diabetes. What have you or your loved one accomplished, despite having diabetes, that you weren't sure you could? Or what have you done that you've been particularly proud of? Or what good thing has diabetes brought into your life?</blockquote>
The first thing for me, obviously, is all that I have accomplished with Sensotrend this far. Both myself and my wife have worked for our startup company full time for over a year already. I feel incredibly empowered, being able to create tools that can help me gain better understanding of how my body works, and better treatment outcomes.<br />
<br />
<a href="http://blog.sensotrend.com/2013/08/making-sense-of-trends-part-22.html" target="_blank">I've written before</a> about the change that using a Continuous Glucose Monitor brought to my life as a diabetic and to my attitude towards treating myself.<br />
<blockquote>
For the first time, I was able to see how my blood glucose really behaved. No more shotgun charts. The resulting chart was rather a roller coaster, showing the glucose go up and down, sometimes fast, some times slower. Very far from the ideal curve, but providing so much more insight than the isolated dots of the meter.</blockquote>
I had been told I can control my blood glucose by simply calculating all the carbs I eat and taking little less insulin when I'm exercising. But for me, it was not so simple, and I could never really explain all the variations in the values of my isolated blood glucose measurements. The CGM curve showed me how the values changed, and prompted me to find out what was causing the different ups and downs.<br />
<br />
That's what changed my attitude completely. I had already given up, found good control of my blood glucose values to be beyond my capabilities. Getting more insights from the CGM curve was the ground breaking change I needed, to get the sense that there is a way to learn what exactly affects my blood glucose levels and how, so <b><u>I can</u></b> start to keep it better under control.<br />
<br />
<a href="http://www.bittersweetdiabetes.com/2015/05/diabetes-blog-week.html"><img border="0" src="https://farm9.staticflickr.com/8772/16529245533_9739d501a5_o.jpg" style="width: 100%" /></a>
Anonymousnoreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4307023251187009005.post-77932788858674305892014-12-22T18:35:00.000+02:002014-12-22T18:37:34.502+02:00A Case for WearablesWearables have been getting a lot of bad reputation due to studies revealing that people abandon them after 6 months. I’d like to defend them, and offer a different view.<br />
<br />
I hit that critical 6 months mark with my Polar Loop in July. I suddenly noticed I just wasn’t wearing it anymore. Also, I started to get annoyed with having to charge the band every few days. Something had clearly happened in our relationship.<br />
<br />
<h3>
Wearables provide information</h3>
I originally started tracking my daily activity with the Moves app, over a year ago. I had heard a lot about the 10 000 daily steps required to stay fit, but I had no idea how many I was taking myself.<br />
<br />
With the Moves app, it took me a few months to learn what it takes to reach that goal. My daily walking commute gets me half way through, and my other activities vary so that I sometimes pass the 10 000 mark, often times not. What was really important for me to learn, however, was how much variation there is. Some days I just stay at home, programming. On those days, I may take less than 200 steps. On other days, I may have several meetings taking place at different locations, and I may take over 15 000 steps without really noticing being involved in any physical activity.<br />
<br />
<h3>
Wearables do help people with chronic conditions</h3>
The main reason for me to track my daily activity is not to get fit. I have type 1 diabetes, which means my body no longer produces the insulin hormone, rather I must inject it myself. I really must pay attention to that variation in my baseline activity, as it directly affects my blood glucose levels and therefore also my insulin needs, both during that day and over the following night.<br />
<br />
Moves app already helped me get some of that understanding, and the Polar Loop added more details. I’m able to track my heart rate at the gym as well as during football games and practices, and learn the effects different levels of exercise have on my blood sugar levels.<br />
<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-oI6Y8wQ9MJY/VJhHjx3chTI/AAAAAAAAAL4/_kAUx3DZ450/s1600/Xmas-Jog.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-oI6Y8wQ9MJY/VJhHjx3chTI/AAAAAAAAAL4/_kAUx3DZ450/s1600/Xmas-Jog.jpg" height="266" width="400" /></a></div>
<br />
<br />
<h3>
Wearables do facilitate behaviour change</h3>
I never expected an app or device to motivate me to exercise more. For me, it has always been more about learning the effects. Still, tracking my daily steps changed my perspective.<br />
<br />
Before, my engineer brain optimized my walking routes for efficiency, for the least amount of steps. Once I started tracking my steps and had that magical number 10 000 in my head, I suddenly started to optimize the routes so that I could get to that goal or exceed it. I ended up selecting routes that would actually increase my step count, instead of getting somewhere in the fastest way. I feel that change in perspective is permanent, even if I end up abandoning my wearable device.<br />
<br />
<h3>
Wearables get abandoned for a reason</h3>
So, my precious wearable had taught me to better manage my chronic condition and helped me be more active, and I was still about to abandon it after that 6 months mark. Had it failed me in some way? I would say, quite the contrary! My wristband has provided me with a wealth of information, and I’m immensely grateful for that. It’s just that after 6 months I’m not learning that much anymore.<br />
<br />
Now, I still wear my Polar Loop almost daily. Partly because it’s a nice visual aid when I explain what our startup Sensotrend does, combining information from medical devices (I point to my glucose meter or insulin pump) with data from activity trackers and other wellness apps (I point to my wrist band). But also because I really want to take the data I gather to the next level, make it more actionable.<br />
<br />
For instance, I’m currently implementing an app on my phone that reminds me to set my insulin delivery overnight to a lower level if my daily count has exceeded 15 000 steps, or increase the rate in case I’ve recorded less than 5 000. This kind of personalized and actionable notifications are the direction I’m hoping many wellness apps will evolve in.<br />
<br />
<h3>
Human touch enhances the effect of wearables</h3>
Finally, let’s not forget the importance of some human interaction. For instance, my wife followed my tracking with interest for a long time, but only started tracking her own steps after I installed a pedometer app to her phone. Installing an app seems trivial for me, but she never got to do it herself. Now she’s way beyond her 6 months mark, and still tracks her steps daily.<br />
<br />
Doing things together certainly also helps with the behavior change. The first time ever I myself recorded 10 000 steps on 7 consecutive days were the days immediately after I had installed the tracker to my wife’s phone.<br />
<br />
<hr />
<small>This post was originally published in the <a href="http://www.healthspa.fi/a-case-for-wearables/" target="_blank">HealthSPA blog</a>.</small>Anonymousnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4307023251187009005.post-65916827944781786442014-10-27T10:27:00.000+02:002014-10-29T17:55:23.775+02:00Using Accu-Chek Smart Pix on MacThe official <a href="https://www.accu-chek.com/us/data-management/smart-pix.html" target="_blank">system requirements for Accu-Chek Smart Pix software</a> don't list OSX as supported, but you can use the reader and the software on Mac, quite easily.<br />
<br />
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-8REJvE3V17Y/VE35GItjpBI/AAAAAAAAAKA/oKIa3yTwWJE/s1600/Screenshot%2B2014-10-27%2B09.47.18.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-8REJvE3V17Y/VE35GItjpBI/AAAAAAAAAKA/oKIa3yTwWJE/s1600/Screenshot%2B2014-10-27%2B09.47.18.png" height="211" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">The official system requirements indicate only Windows is supported.</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
This is how I do it:<br />
<br />
First, I install the reader to the USB port on your Mac. I get a notification of an error, but I just ignore it.<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-ggvzh9mvDy0/VE3510FUUmI/AAAAAAAAAKI/RJyhQl9Fvv8/s1600/Screenshot%2B2014-10-27%2B09.32.30.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-ggvzh9mvDy0/VE3510FUUmI/AAAAAAAAAKI/RJyhQl9Fvv8/s1600/Screenshot%2B2014-10-27%2B09.32.30.png" height="101" width="320" /></a></div>
The light on the device flashes and then starts blinking, indicating the device is already open for reading your meter or pump.<br />
<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
</div>
<table cellpadding="20" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-hzX81y_XmgU/VE36uxpl0PI/AAAAAAAAAKY/5eOkoJe5Tzk/s1600/2014-10-27%2B09.30.40.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-hzX81y_XmgU/VE36uxpl0PI/AAAAAAAAAKY/5eOkoJe5Tzk/s1600/2014-10-27%2B09.30.40.jpg" height="200" width="150" /></a></td><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-0EFbWYHB6M8/VE36taAKfmI/AAAAAAAAAKQ/4TO7uv0p4UA/s1600/2014-10-27%2B09.30.51.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; display: inline !important; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><img border="0" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-0EFbWYHB6M8/VE36taAKfmI/AAAAAAAAAKQ/4TO7uv0p4UA/s1600/2014-10-27%2B09.30.51.jpg" height="200" width="150" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">First a flash</td><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Then blinking</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
</div>
I then open the SMART_PIX device and launch the START.HTML file.<br />
<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-zu10Is2Lmyw/VE38dq90SFI/AAAAAAAAAKs/FvjpcWzPzAI/s1600/Screenshot%2B2014-10-27%2B09.34.04.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-zu10Is2Lmyw/VE38dq90SFI/AAAAAAAAAKs/FvjpcWzPzAI/s1600/Screenshot%2B2014-10-27%2B09.34.04.png" height="253" width="400" /></a></div>
<br />
And there it is, Smart Pix software on my standard Safari browser.<br />
<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-DTmJOgJAmNc/VE38cPTtYBI/AAAAAAAAAKk/JmBRwIJDMQI/s1600/Screenshot%2B2014-10-27%2B09.35.32.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-DTmJOgJAmNc/VE38cPTtYBI/AAAAAAAAAKk/JmBRwIJDMQI/s1600/Screenshot%2B2014-10-27%2B09.35.32.png" height="335" width="400" /></a></div>
The software is immediately ready to read a device, so I just put my meter in data transfer mode and set it in front of the receiver.<br />
<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-d19KmPjw1f0/VE39VrJl_6I/AAAAAAAAAK0/wzmPPdVEOGY/s1600/2014-10-27%2B09.36.06.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-d19KmPjw1f0/VE39VrJl_6I/AAAAAAAAAK0/wzmPPdVEOGY/s1600/2014-10-27%2B09.36.06.jpg" height="320" width="240" /></a></div>
<br />
Once the transfer is complete, I get a notification...<br />
<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-144FKcZh5qA/VE39oB7__CI/AAAAAAAAALA/bpCR9eBcBr8/s1600/Screenshot%2B2014-10-27%2B09.36.46.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-144FKcZh5qA/VE39oB7__CI/AAAAAAAAALA/bpCR9eBcBr8/s1600/Screenshot%2B2014-10-27%2B09.36.46.png" height="268" width="320" /></a></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
... and can then access the information from my meter.</div>
<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-XmMEfzHAl58/VE39oV1RUKI/AAAAAAAAAK8/Ehlo7nF41kE/s1600/Screenshot%2B2014-10-27%2B09.37.44.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-XmMEfzHAl58/VE39oV1RUKI/AAAAAAAAAK8/Ehlo7nF41kE/s1600/Screenshot%2B2014-10-27%2B09.37.44.png" height="396" width="640" /></a></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
The same works with the pump. I click Read Device, set the pump to data transfer mode and put it in front of the receiver.</div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-w3qQIvkK6HA/VE3-WNkWJ9I/AAAAAAAAALM/HCoZi8ltAao/s1600/2014-10-27%2B09.39.27.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-w3qQIvkK6HA/VE3-WNkWJ9I/AAAAAAAAALM/HCoZi8ltAao/s1600/2014-10-27%2B09.39.27.jpg" height="320" width="240" /></a></div>
<br />
<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-JdVAD84Z4IQ/VE3_CVJIGZI/AAAAAAAAALU/7pAoNsfthG8/s1600/Screenshot%2B2014-10-27%2B09.39.43.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-JdVAD84Z4IQ/VE3_CVJIGZI/AAAAAAAAALU/7pAoNsfthG8/s1600/Screenshot%2B2014-10-27%2B09.39.43.png" height="198" width="320" /></a></div>
<br />
After the transfer is complete, I can see also the pump data in Smart Pix.<br />
<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-bnj1bHWjlnA/VE3_CvWfUvI/AAAAAAAAALY/ASpx6SNMUNQ/s1600/Screenshot%2B2014-10-27%2B09.40.27.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-bnj1bHWjlnA/VE3_CvWfUvI/AAAAAAAAALY/ASpx6SNMUNQ/s1600/Screenshot%2B2014-10-27%2B09.40.27.png" height="396" width="640" /></a></div>
As I explained in the <a href="http://blog.sensotrend.com/2014/10/device-data-and-daylight-saving-time.html">previous post</a>, all the data from before the change from daylight saving time to standard time is unaccessible to Smart Pix, so here I only see a short period of data.<br />
<br />
I can then examine the data with all the views and graphs Smart Pix has to offer, and also generate the report.<br />
<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-BXJ1cZnbNEQ/VE4AN017rzI/AAAAAAAAALo/acZNDnolmcw/s1600/Screenshot%2B2014-10-27%2B09.42.01.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-BXJ1cZnbNEQ/VE4AN017rzI/AAAAAAAAALo/acZNDnolmcw/s1600/Screenshot%2B2014-10-27%2B09.42.01.png" height="396" width="640" /></a></div>
<br />
If I want, I can 'print' the report and save it as a PDF file to be sent to my healthcare team to look at.<br />
<br />
So, works for me!<br />
<br />
On my Windows machine I use a different version of Smart Pix that actually preserves all my data in an internal database, and therefore allows me to view data from an even longer period of time. But apart from that, the software works pretty well for me also on my Mac.<br />
<br />
Please feel free to let me know in the comments if your Mac behaves differently.<br />
<br />
<b><span style="color: red;">Update: Please note the response from Accu-Chek. The software has not been certified to work with Mac, so you're using it on your own risk!</span></b><br />
<br />
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" lang="en">
<a href="https://twitter.com/mrinnetmaki">@mrinnetmaki</a> TY for the mention pls note the SmartPix is not approved/cleared in the manner you've described in your blog.<br />
— Accu-Chek US (@accuchek_us) <a href="https://twitter.com/accuchek_us/status/527487338977705985">October 29, 2014</a></blockquote>
<script async="" charset="utf-8" src="//platform.twitter.com/widgets.js"></script>
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<br />Anonymousnoreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4307023251187009005.post-39653708265120907432014-10-25T12:07:00.001+03:002014-10-26T10:03:52.815+02:00Device data and Daylight Saving TimeLast year I lost a few months worth of data from my insulin pump, due to poor software.<br />
<br />
When I downloaded the data to my computer on November 3rd, I could only see it back to October 27. When examining the raw data, the data available at the cutoff point was:<br />
<br />
<span style="font-family: Courier New, Courier, monospace;"><BASAL Dt="2013-10-27" Tm="10:24" cbrf="0.75" profile="3" remark="time / date set (time shift back)" /></span><br />
<br />
There was no data going back from that time. The previous time I had downloaded the data from my pump was at the end of August, so I ended up losing two months worth of data.<br />
<br />
<b>That data contained all the information of my temporary basal settings, and was really important for me. As I'm figuring out the correct basal dosing related to my exercise, I want to take a look back every now and then to see which rates have worked best during exercise and after it.</b><br />
<br />
I really wanted to save the data from all the football matches from one season, where I had used different settings for different games and practices, to be able to analyze the results and also share it with my healthcare team and other people with diabetes. Now I could not do it anymore.<br />
<br />
I explained my problem to the pump support team and they confirmed this is a flaw in their software. The pump actually preserves all the data, but the software used to read it gets confused when there are overlapping entries or gaps in the records. And this happens each time you change the time on the pump, whether due to daylight saving time or traveling to another time zone. They also explained that this is a well known problem and they are working on getting it fixed. As for now, there is no fix available.<br />
<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-VVEpCHWKEm0/VEyqzHa9X5I/AAAAAAAAAJw/Vl_KtA1VsXk/s1600/SmartPix-timechange-highlight.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-VVEpCHWKEm0/VEyqzHa9X5I/AAAAAAAAAJw/Vl_KtA1VsXk/s1600/SmartPix-timechange-highlight.png" height="318" width="320" /></a></div>
<br />
<br />
<b>So if you're using the Accu-Chek insulin pump and care about your data, make sure to download the data before changing the time on the device!</b>Anonymousnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4307023251187009005.post-67482328216036046222014-08-27T11:25:00.000+03:002014-08-27T11:25:26.080+03:00Our path to Slush 2013There are just a few days left to register your startup to Slush, in case you're interested in the early bird price. Note the comment!<br />
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<br />
<br />
And then there's the registration form.<br />
<br />
When we filled the form a year ago, we really didn't have much clue on what to write there. We did the best we could, submitted the form, and waited. And waited.<br />
<br />
Then, just two weeks before the event, we got an email announcing that our company was not among the 100 companies selected for the pitching competition. They recommended that we concentrate our efforts on networking during the event.<br />
<br />
We were devastated. It felt that mail destroyed everything we had been working for over the past months. We were very disappointed with the application process, that was just a black box. Had we known what kind of info they expect in each of the form fields, we could surely had filled it out better. The world seemed to be a very unfair place for a moment.<br />
<br />
But after a day or two, we got a new mail, saying we had been selected to be present on the Health Track and we'll get a demo booth for one day. So instead of pitching for one minute for a random audience, we'd have the chance to present our service to many people interested in healthcare services, without time limits - and we got the stand for free! Things were looking very bright again.<br />
<br />
A week before the event we got yet another email. We were offered 5 minutes stage time to launch our service on stage as part of the Health Track program. This was just superb. So much better than the pitching competition would have been for us. Of course, there was only a week left and we had all of that week already scheduled for other preparations. But we just had to take this opportunity as well.<br />
<br />
So we quickly created a launch campaign and the presentation. We couldn't get everything done in time, so we were probably one of the only companies with a booth but without a rollup (we used a screen instead). Free tip for you, startups, get your rollup ready in time. You're going to need it.<br />
<br />
<iframe allowfullscreen="" frameborder="0" height="270" src="//www.youtube.com/embed/uKrOjDYXKQ0" width="480"></iframe>
<br />
During the event, there were some last minute changes again and a bit of hassle, but that feeling of creative chaos is just part of what makes Slush so great, I guess. Our booth was busy the whole day and the launch was received with a lot of love and plenty of registered users.<br />
<br />
In the end, there was one more nice surprise, when Slush featured us in <a href="http://www.slush.org/2013/2013/11/fighting-diabetes-slush/" target="_blank">their blog</a>. We ended up getting so many good things. For us, this still is perhaps the most striking experience of what it means to be an entrepreneur. We lived through the initial disappointment and through every new positive turn so fully and with so much emotion. And it taught us that even in desperate times there are amazing things ahead.<br />
<br />
This year, we still don't know exactly what to write on the registration form. But we do know there will be ups and downs on our path to Slush and beyond. And we'll most likely be devastated and depressed at some point again. But this time we'll face all obstacles with a new kind of confidence.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4307023251187009005.post-46783061588135356962014-08-20T20:47:00.000+03:002014-08-20T20:47:14.459+03:00Our Learnings from Startup SaunaStartup Sauna just published their schedule for Local Events, and are welcoming applications for the 2014 autumn batch. To help you make up your mind on whether to apply, we decided to share some of our experiences from the spring batch.<br />
<br />
We had a hard time deciding on whether to even apply. When we did and managed to get in, we still weren't sure whether that's the right move.<br />
<br />
For us, the main question was timing. We had graduated from the Protomo startup incubator some time earlier and had our business model and financials together in some form. But we weren't really fully satisfied with them and thought we could improve.<br />
<br />
On the other hand, our product required development as well, and we knew Startup Sauna wouldn't help us much with that. We were also in a process of including a new member into an important technical role in our team, and being present in two places at the same time would not really be possible. Concentrating on product development seemed to us to be more important.<br />
<br />
When making the decision, we thought it would be awesome to concentrate on business development for just five weeks really intensively, so that we'd get all of that figured out and our materials ready for a long time ahead. After the accelerator period we would really be able to concentrate fully on product development. If there was a pitch event somewhere we could just attend and deliver our fine-tuned pitch, and when a potential investor would ask for some material, we'd have all those in stellar condition and could just send them.<br />
<br />
We talked with some teams from previous Startup Sauna batches, asking what they had gotten out of the program. Everyone spoke highly of the spirit within the accelerator and praised the amount of contacts you get, but some also warned us that the time spent with coaches may not be enough to really develop the business of the company.<br />
<br />
In the end, we decided to take the opportunity. We had gotten so much out of Slush, and it was organized by the same people.<br />
<br />
The program consisted of lectures by experienced startup entrepreneurs and professionals in the field, pitching training, and one-on-one sessions with investors and coaches. The lectures were of high quality, but not that different from the ones from our incubator. Same with the training. The one-on-one sessions lasted typically 20 minutes, which is certainly not enough for any coaching, but is really good for getting to know a bit of each other and see whether it would make sense to meet again separately from the accelerator program. In our incubator, we typically got a longer time with the coaches, from an hour to two. These are clearly different approaches, Startup Sauna way being much closer to matchmaking than coaching.<br />
<br />
Our company is located in Tampere and Startup Sauna resides in Espoo. We decided not to move to Espoo for the five week period, rather commute by train (around two hours in one direction, but almost all of that is efficient working time) and stay overnight occasionally at friends or family members who live in the capital area. This way we were still able to meet as a team in Tampere every once in a while.<br />
<br />
Our hopes were high, but the biggest ones did not materialize. Our pitch surely improved during the program, but that was never one of our main problem areas. We also got a lot of contacts that could help us forward at some point. But we can't really say our business plan and investor materials improved that much during our stay at the accelerator. And the five weeks certainly had a negative impact on our product development and also damaged the team. We ended up losing the potential hire.<br />
<br />
So if you're considering applying to the autumn batch, there are a few things to consider. Don't expect too much development to happen over the accelerator period. The thing our batch spent most time developing was the pitch, so if you think yours is in a bad shape, this might be a good opportunity. Of course you need to find a way to get in with your poor pitch, which may not be easy.<br />
<br />
I would also suggest you make it extra clear to yourself what it is that you're expecting to get and communicate that clearly during the application process. Tell the coaches what it is you want to achieve and push them to help you make that happen. For our batch, there was no real per-company curriculum, rather the program was pretty much the same for all of us. And it was hard to get one-on-one time from the head coaches. After all, there were 17 teams, and even the head coaches seemed to be present less than two days per week. And a significant amount of that time was reserved for scheduled activities. So again, perhaps 20 minutes of one-on-one time weekly. You really need to think how to use that time to communicate what you think makes sense for your company.<br />
<br />
Finally, these are just experiences of one team. Also remember that the Startup Sauna is different each time. I'm sure they have analyzed the feedback from the teams in our batch, and made many changes for their autumn batch.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4307023251187009005.post-6190882469208453252014-08-13T13:31:00.000+03:002014-08-13T13:31:00.199+03:00The Evolution of a PitchIn this post, we'll take a look at how our investor pitch has evolved over the past year.<br />
<br />
As securing financing is perhaps the most important task of any startup, and as the pitch deck is perhaps the most crucial tool in that process, you'd think that's the one thing startups do really well. But it turns out that in addition to the pitch deck, there's so much other stuff that a startup needs to be involved in, that one never gets enough time to get the pitch perfected. So some of our pitch decks below are just plain horrible, whereas others we feel are OK, meaning good enough to deliver the message. But there's no pitch we're even nearly 100% happy with.<br />
<br />
<br />
<iframe allowfullscreen="" frameborder="0" height="356" marginheight="0" marginwidth="0" scrolling="no" src="//www.slideshare.net/slideshow/embed_code/37650646" style="border-width: 1px; border: 1px solid #CCC; margin-bottom: 5px; max-width: 100%;" width="427"> </iframe> <br />
Our first ever public presentation was at FiBAN Pirkanmaa Pitching Competition, after having worked as a team for less than two months. Despite the appearance of the slide set, we ended up on second place out of 12 teams and companies.<br />
<br />
<br />
<iframe allowfullscreen="" frameborder="0" height="356" marginheight="0" marginwidth="0" scrolling="no" src="//www.slideshare.net/slideshow/embed_code/37674698" style="border-width: 1px; border: 1px solid #CCC; margin-bottom: 5px; max-width: 100%;" width="427"> </iframe> <br />
For Slush, prepared a <a href="http://www.slideshare.net/mikaelrinnetmaki/sensotrend-slide-deck-for-investors">deck for sit-down meetings</a> with investors, and another one for the product launch (above). You can also <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uKrOjDYXKQ0">see the video</a> of the launch presentation. It annoys me quite a bit that we use the term HIE on one slide, where the correct term had been PHR, a Personal Health Record. Nevertheless, the presentation was received with a lot of love from the audience, perhaps partly because I almost cried at the end. It was just such a big moment for me. I've met people who tell me six months later they still remember me and the company from that pitch. That just reminds me of the fact that it's never about the slides.<br />
<br />
<br />
<iframe allowfullscreen="" frameborder="0" height="356" marginheight="0" marginwidth="0" scrolling="no" src="//www.slideshare.net/slideshow/embed_code/37675290" style="border-width: 1px; border: 1px solid #CCC; margin-bottom: 5px; max-width: 100%;" width="427"> </iframe>
<br />
Seed Forum had quite strict guidelines for the 6 minute pitch in their event. That's good in the sense that there's less pondering about what to tell. On the other hand, there's no universal pitch format that would suit each and every startup.<br />
<br />
We've given some very informal presentations as well. For instance, the <a href="http://www.slideshare.net/SitraHyvinvointi/diabeteksen-omahoito-nyt-startupin-nkkulma-sensotrend" target="_blank">presentation on startup's point of view</a> in a seminar discussing the current state of diabetes treatment (in Finnish, see also the <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ia--8bYv9FY" target="_blank">video recording</a>). It really feels strange to keep a presentation for 20 or 30 minutes, after getting used to shaving off seconds from an investor pitch to make it fit to the allotted time.<br />
<br />
<br />
<iframe allowfullscreen="" frameborder="0" height="356" marginheight="0" marginwidth="0" scrolling="no" src="//www.slideshare.net/slideshow/embed_code/37676360" style="border-width: 1px; border: 1px solid #CCC; margin-bottom: 5px; max-width: 100%;" width="427"> </iframe> <br />
Our latest investor pitch is the 3 minute one from Startup Sauna demo day. I'm still not loving it. I don't think I'll ever be really happy with the pitch. There's always things you can do to enhance the visuals, the story is never straight enough. I feel we also need to cram in all the drama and death and such, whereas I'd much rather talk of my own problems that are closer to irritation and annoyance towards devices and apps that require me to copy information manually from one place to another, measurement by measurement. That's what we're really solving right now. But for a big stage, you need bigger drama, and we'll try to roll with that.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4307023251187009005.post-33473487018447400422014-08-05T08:03:00.000+03:002014-08-05T08:03:00.466+03:00The First Year of SensotrendIt's hard to believe a full year has passed since <a href="http://blog.sensotrend.com/2013/08/hello-world.html">the first post in this blog</a>.<br />
<br />
To recap Sensotrend's first year shortly, I'd say we've gotten plenty of praise and publicity, and learned a tremendous amount about startup business and financing. On the other hand, a year ago I certainly imagined our product to have been launched by now. There has hardly ever been a better time to be a technology startup entrepreneur in Finland, but it still feels incredibly hard to get a company off the ground.<br />
<br />
From the start, our worst scenario was that we'd spend all our resources into developing a product and then exhaust when the time came to bring it to the market. We've heard time and time again that this is the most common case for startups, especially so in Finland where engineering has traditionally been the strongest part of any technology company.<br />
<br />
So we decided to concentrate our early efforts into communicating our idea to the public. That way, even if we would not succeed, more people would have learned about the need, and the next company implementing the same idea would have better chances of success. In the end, what really drives me personally is the need for a solution. I need the product that combines my data from all the different apps and devices much more than I need to be the one implementing it.<br />
<br />
In our incubator we also learned that startups that start by implementing a product almost always fail because their product ends up not meeting the needs of the real users. Rather, the product must be developed together with the end users, constantly validating the assumptions of the engineers implementing the product.<br />
<br />
So we have been 'out of the building', as they say in the Lean Startup scene. And we've certainly been out a lot, discussing our product with people with diabetes, doctors, nurses, partner companies and investors. A lot more than we've been inside the building, implementing the service.<br />
<br />
Right now I feel we need to get back into the building for a while. We need to take all that we have learned and validated so far, and start working towards a MVP (minimum viable product, another Lean Startup buzzword) that we can give to end users, to take our learning to the next level.<br />
<br />
Focusing on product development means saying no to a lot of offered publicity and most likely also to some opportunities to secure more funding. We'll still do our best to get a message out every now and then in this blog or through our Twitter or Facebook accounts.<br />
<br />
But our main priority right now is to get a product out for initial test users. We've got a bunch of alpha and beta users recruited, and we'll involve them in every step of the development of the product. If you're a person with diabetes, eager to test cutting edge technology and not afraid to see it break to pieces momentarily, you can still get involved. Just send us an email at info@sensotrend.com.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4307023251187009005.post-60839271510424862452014-05-31T12:50:00.000+03:002014-05-31T12:50:15.030+03:00How can data serve the diabetes community?We at Sensotrend tend to promote cooperation between companies quite a lot. As a part of this activity, we're quite active in providing feedback to other startups developing their services.
Below you can find an example of this.<br />
<br />
The process was triggered by the tweet:
<br />
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" lang="en">
How can data serve the <a href="https://twitter.com/search?q=%23diabetes&src=hash">#diabetes</a> community? <a href="https://twitter.com/scanadu">@Scanadu</a> wants to know, contact Alex@Scanadu.com to learn how you can help. <a href="https://twitter.com/search?q=%23S4PM&src=hash">#S4PM</a> <a href="https://twitter.com/search?q=%23ourD&src=hash">#ourD</a><br />
— quantifiedself (@quantifiedself) <a href="https://twitter.com/quantifiedself/statuses/456493983535861760">April 16, 2014</a></blockquote>
The text below is based on the email discussion that followed, formatted into a blog post.<br />
<hr />
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<span style="font-size: 12pt;"><span style="font-family: Calibri Regular;">Hi
Alex,</span></span></div>
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</span><br />
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<span style="font-size: 12pt;"><span style="font-family: Calibri Regular;">I
fully share your vision of combining data from medical devices and wellness
trackers, and using that data to improve health and healthcare.</span></span></div>
<span style="font-family: Times New Roman;">
</span><br />
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<br /></div>
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</span><br />
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<span style="font-size: 12pt;"><span style="font-family: Calibri Regular;">Regarding
your questions, here goes:</span></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 12pt;"><span style="font-family: Times New Roman;"></span></span><br /></div>
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</span><br />
<ol start="1" style="margin-bottom: 0px; margin-top: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-top: 0px;" type="1">
<li style="font-size: 12pt; margin: 0in 0in 12pt;"><b>Tell
us a little bit about yourself :).</b><span style="font-size: 12pt;"><br />
<br />
Male, age 38, software professional (user experience design,
programming, project and product management, sales, consulting) for 16
years, type 1 diabetic for 15 years. A startup entrepreneur for less than
a year now.<br />
<br />
Regarding my diabetes, I’m currently using an insulin pump. My
HbA1c levels (the ‘official metric’, a rough indicator of my blood
glucose levels lately) has been between 6.9 % and 7.3 % (using the old
NGSP scale still widely in use, 52 - 56 mmol/mol on the new IFCC
scale), so fairly OK.<br />
<br />
My HbA1c used to be worse. Around 4 years ago, I had a kind of a
diabetes burnout. I did inject insulin and measured my blood glucose,
but I could never really estimate my blood glucose without measuring, nor
explain the result after a measurement. The measurements just
were anywhere in 3.5 - 22.5 range (again, different scales exist, I’m using mmol/l here, I know mg/dl is used in the U.S.), and there was no visible trend, they
were just scattered all over the place, a shotgun pattern. My
HbA1c was 9.4 %. It was really frustrating, and overwhelming.<br />
<br />
What helped me out of that burnout was data from a continuous glucose
monitor (CGM). It helped me see patterns and trends. Even when
it did not always provide clear answers to why something was happening, it
gave me better tools to approach those questions myself.</span></li>
<li style="font-size: 12pt; margin: 0in 0in 12pt;"><b>Please
describe how an average day in your life looks like? Specifically, please
let us know where the medical system plays a role...<br />
</b><span style="font-size: 12pt;"><br />
I prick my finger and measure my blood glucose several times per day.
Usually when I wake up, immediately before and sometime after each meal,
before, during and after any exercise, and before bed time.<br />
<br />
Whenever I eat or drink something containing carbohydrates, I need to
think of the effect it has on my blood glucose, and dose insulin
accordingly. The same with all physical exercise, and also lack of any
exercise. Stress and illnesses also affect glucose levels and insulin
consumption.<br />
<br />
Currently, my blood glucose meter is my command center and dashboard for
daily operation. It has some intelligence built in, known as a bolus
calculator. I have configured it with some parameters: Carb Ratio tells
how much each gram of carbohydrates elevates my blood glucose, Insulin
Sensitivity tells how much each unit of insulin brings it back down. There
are settings for Stress, Illness, two Types of Exercise, and also for
Menstrual Cycle, which I’m not using. With all these parameters, the bolus
calculator helps me calculate the correct dose of insulin for each
situation.<br />
<br />
</span><em><span style="color: #404040; font-family: Calibri Italic;">When I woke up today at 6:49, my glucose was
12.9, a bit high. At 8:17, before breakfast, it was 18.2, so quite high
already and rising fast. I need to think why that’s happening. My
assumption is that my glucose has been low during the morning hours,
causing the liver to release extra glucose to my blood stream, but since I
don’t have any measurement data from the night time, I would need a
continuous glucose monitor (CGM) to verify that. There may be other
factors as well. Sometimes the infusion site (where the pump injects the
insulin to my body through a cannula) gets corrupted somehow. Sometimes
just pure stress causes my glucose levels to rise. It might also be that
the meter reading was off for some reason, but I tend to rely on it being
within the 15 % threshold. It’s been really quite usual for my second
measurement being higher than the first one, but not by this much. I think
about the basal insulin (continuously dosed background insulin) rate
during the night hours. If my glucose levels have in fact been too low, it’s
an indication that there has been too much basal insulin. However, I did
not do any particular exercise the previous day (after sports I need to
reduce the basal rate), and as mentioned, usually the trend has been
upwards in the morning, rather an indication of too little basal insulin.
Then again, it might be that the rising trend only starts when I wake up,
as a result of stress, and when asleep the trend is in fact downward. And
yet again, we’re just past the 4 day weekend due to Easter holidays. This
may have affected the levels of my cortisol hormone. I might have less
stress, and therefore the glucose levels have dropped last night, whereas
usually the stronger cortisol keeps them up. Who’s to tell? There are several
hypotheses, but not enough data.<br />
<br />
I then looked at my meal. Breakfast is usually the easiest of the day, as
it tends to be pretty much the same each day. I entered my guesstimate of
50 grams of carbohydrates in my blood glucose meter. It told me to dose 6.3
units of insulin for the carbs, and another 6.5 to bring the high glucose
back to the target range. I accepted and pushed OK. The meter communicates
with the pump over Bluetooth, and the pump starts to dose the insulin.
This is called bolus insulin, one that you dose per event, in addition to
the background basal insulin.<br />
<br />
After breakfast, I worked at home for some time, then walked to the
office. The walk takes less than 20 minutes and I don’t really count that
as exercise, but a pedometer application on my phone keeps track of my
steps. When I first started to use the pedometer it took me by surprise
that I can walk less than 500 steps on some days when just programming at
home, and nearly 20 000 steps on others, when there are several meetings
in different places, without really paying attention to it. But it surely
has an effect on my glucose levels and insulin consumption, so nowadays I
do check the amount of steps some time during the evening.<br />
<br />
At work, I noticed the first symptoms of hypoglycemia, blood glucose
dropping too low. I measured for confirmation and got the confirmation
from my meter, 3.9 mmol/l. I always carry glucose with me for these
situations, and took 6 tablets, enough to restore my glucose. The extra
insulin to fix the high glucose at breakfast was probably too aggressive.
I’ve created a mental note for myself never to correct a high with more
than 5 units with a meal and not more than 2 units when not eating, but
somehow managed to ignore that at breakfast. I could adjust the insulin
sensitivity parameter in my bolus calculator, but it seems to be working
fine with smaller corrections. So I’ll leave it as it is, for now, and try
to remember my own rules for bigger corrections. An hour later, before
lunch, my meter shows 5.1, a good number.</span></em><span style="font-size: 12pt;"><br />
<br />
My day is filled with wondering and pondering like that. With exercise, it
becomes even more complicated. Exercise has been the biggest challenge for
me regarding my diabetes treatment. If I don’t do any, my blood glucose
values tend to go up, no matter how I try to compensate with
additional insulin. However, when I do exercise, I find it hard to adjust
my insulin levels accordingly.<br />
<br />
When eating, I need to consider whether I’m going to be active within a
few hours after the meal, and in that case lower the amount of bolus insulin.
I also should lower the basal insulin up to two hours before beginning to
exercise. When exercising, I need to think how long it’s been since I last
ate, does the level of exercise match the level I estimated when setting
the basal rate. I also need to pay specific attention to my mood and
stress. When I go jogging, my glucose levels go down, but when I play
soccer, they tend to go up, due to the competitive nature of sports and
the related adrenalin. And after the exercise, I need to think about how I
should adjust my basal rate for the following hours, the following night,
and the next day.<br />
<br />
Lately stress has become a major factor as well. When pitching my startup
for a room of investors, I can feel my pulse increasing and a certain
nervousness. Nothing that would prevent me from performing, but something
clearly affecting my glucose levels (from 5.9 to 18.6 without any extra
insulin to compensate the effects of adrenalin).<br />
<br />
You’d think one would eventually get a hang of the required insulin doses
for each situation. I’ve had diabetes for almost 15 years now, and I’m
still learning. Our soccer season is just starting. The first games are a
shock to my body, and it takes time until it adapts, so each game is
different. And each new season of soccer has a different impact. My body
is not the same it was last year, the winter was poor in Finland and I
didn’t ski at all, but I played futsal. All these things play their role
in the equation, and it’s not a simple one to solve.<br />
<br />
</span></li>
<li style="font-size: 12pt; margin: 0in 0in 12pt;"><b>On a regular basis, what data (e.g. blood pressure,
activity, etc.) are you most interested in referencing? What do you use it
for?</b><span style="color: windowtext; font-size: 12pt;"><br />
<br />
Most important for me are the blood glucose levels. Are they on or off
target, do I need to correct? Also, I need to see the trends, and try to
learn from them.<br />
<br />
I monitor my physical activity and exercise quite extensively, to see how
it affects my blood glucose and to learn to adjust the insulin doses
accordingly.<br />
<br />
When my blood glucose levels are high and won’t come down for some reason,
I check my blood for ketones, an indication of possible diabetic
ketoasidosis.<br />
<br />
I’ve tracked my blood pressure occasionally. However, the levels seem to
be quite static and in a safe range, so I only measure occasionally
nowadays, around once every two weeks.<br />
<br />
Regarding urine tests you mentioned, I get checked for microalbuminuria
once a year, with a bunch of other lab tests. It is a bit awkward to
transfer the sample container to and from home for night time urine
collection, but really not a problem I would personally pay any real attention
to.<br />
<br />
</span></li>
<li style="font-size: 12pt; margin: 0in 0in 12pt;"><b>With #2-3 in mind, where are some areas where you feel
you could use some help or that someone could improve your daily life?</b><span style="color: windowtext; font-size: 12pt;"><br />
<br />
I’d appreciate having the possibility to wear a CGM for longer periods of
time. Nowadays I can get one from my diabetes clinic for one or two weeks,
but I feel that’s hardly enough time to learn anything. There are so many
factors involved.<br />
<br />
I’d like to be able to log all nutrition in a more automated way. I’ve
seen some attempts in this direction, devices analyzing the blood stream
non-invasively and software recognizing the macronutrients from a picture
of a meal. I think the need for this kind of measurements is there, but
personally don’t trust any of the available solutions enough.<br />
<br />
I’d also like to track my stress levels. I know there are things you can
measure, but I don’t currently have the tools. I also don’t know which
would be more suitable; heart rate variability, galvanic skin response, or
some other metric.<br />
<br />
When analyzing the glucose measurements, whether from a glucometer or a
CGM, I’d highly appreciate the possibility to have the results annotated
in detail: what kind of exercise was involved (aerobic or non-aerobic,
competitive or not), what nutrition, etc., and also the possibility to
search and sort the results (show me all the game days from previous
soccer season, and also their next days).<br />
<br />
I know the bionic pancreas is being developed for people with type 1
diabetes, but think its commercial deployment is years and years ahead.
Still, even now some kind of alerts and advice throughout the day would be
welcome.<br />
<br />
</span></li>
<li style="font-size: 12pt; margin: 0in 0in 12pt;"><b>Given the above-mentioned context, what are the top 3
things you would like to see someone do for you?</b><span style="color: windowtext; font-size: 12pt;"><br />
<br />
First thing for me would be the diabetes diary with automated data
collection from multiple wellness trackers. That’s something I know I can
do myself, so that’s what our startup Sensotrend is concentrated on. What
would help us are API’s for different services and devices. All of the
devices should really transfer their data to cloud services automagically.
I know some people think it’s empowering for the patients to enter the
data manually to logbooks. No, it isn’t. It’s simply too much of an effort.
Too prone for errors, omissions, too. It’s much better to save the efforts
for analyzing the data.<br />
<br />
As mentioned, I’d like to be able to track my nutrition easily. I
currently have a great incentive to enter my carb estimates to the bolus
calculator. But I don’t really track the glycemic index or other
macronutrients of my meals, although I would like to have that information
present when analyzing my glucose measurement data. Just a great meal
logging app with superb assistance would be cool, but all fully automated
solutions are very welcome as well.<br />
<br />
Another thing I can think of is the measurement of stress. I’d like to be
able to track that without any effort, and be able to concentrate on
matters that cause the stress. I’d also like to quantify it better than
just based on how I feel.<br />
<br />
</span><span style="font-size: 12pt;">Finally,</span><span style="color: windowtext; font-size: 12pt;"> data alone does not give you answers. For me, seeing
trends from CGM allowed me to see some patterns, as opposed to the shotgun
chart of fingertip measurements. But I needed to find the ways of
stabilizing that rollercoaster. So </span><span style="font-size: 12pt;">it
is super important to get high quality instructions and assistance.<br />
<br />
The current healthcare system gets me from bad condition to OK, but how
about when I want to go from OK to great? I understand the resources of
the skilled doctors are best spent in bringing as many people as possible
to the OK level. On the other hand, when I’m OK, and still have the drive
to learn more and keep improving, I don’t think I’d be requiring so much
handholding. Just high quality resources I could study on my own.
Resources I can trust. I find it rather hard to find those.<br />
<br />
Even better than reading material would be services that analyze the data
I’ve tracked, find patterns there, and provide explanations and
suggestions. That’s where I hope to lead Sensotrend someday, and really
hope we won’t be there alone. We’re a long way from there, though. Plenty
of research is required before that. And plenty of data. We’re hoping to
advance step by step, first just visualizing the data from different
sources in a single user interface optimized for diabetes treatment, then
perhaps sharing that information with peers and healthcare professionals,
and gradually introducing algorithms making data analysis easier for
people, before ultimately letting algorithms propose changes to treatment
parameters.</span><span style="color: windowtext; font-size: 12pt;"><br />
<br />
</span></li>
<li style="font-size: 12pt; margin: 0in 0in 12pt;"><b>Anything else related to this area that you think
someone should be solving or that you would like to see?</b><span style="color: windowtext; font-size: 12pt;"><br />
<br />
</span><span style="font-size: 12pt;">I’d like to see healthcare
services increasingly adopting the data from wellness trackers and other
devices the patients use themselves. I’m already seeing a lot of that and
think that’s a clear trend. It could still be accelerated, though.<br />
<br />
I’d like to see the big healthcare IT giants open up their interfaces for
third parties to introduce services on their platforms, but kind of
understand why that’s taking some time to happen.<br />
<br />
I’ve heard some doctors have mixed feelings regarding information provided
by the patients. All of the healthcare professionals that have
participated in treating my diabetes appreciate the data that reflects the
real life of the person with diabetes. They do prefer the glucometer log
over a pen and paper logbook, though. So I’ve never really seen that trust
issue, but have heard it exists in some other fields of medicine.<br />
<br />
</span></li>
</ol>
<span style="font-family: Times New Roman;">
</span><br />
<div style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
<span style="font-size: 12pt;"><span style="font-family: Calibri Regular;">I’m
happy to elaborate on any of the answers. I’d also be happy if I would have been able to
write them in a shorter format, but this is the shortest I could do this time. So
apologies for the length, I hope you find the information valuable, though. :)</span></span></div>
<div style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
<span style="font-size: 12pt;"></span></div>
</div>
</div>
</div>
<hr />
Anonymousnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4307023251187009005.post-4550205597407165762014-05-18T23:14:00.000+03:002019-09-06T11:43:05.663+03:00Diabetes Thought For the DayThe topic of the last day of <a href="http://www.bittersweetdiabetes.com/2014/05/diabetes-blog-week.html" target="_blank">Diabetes Blog Week</a> is My Favorite Things, meaning what has moved me the most during the week.<br />
<br />
This was the first time ever I attended the Diabetes Blog Week. One important thing for me was that the week pushed me to write and get my thoughts out. Too many times in the past I've drafted something but never quite finished with the writing. It really helps to have a schedule. I didn't manage to post on Saturday, but don't feel too bad about it.<br />
<br />
What's a lot more important is that the through the Diabetes Blog Week I found dozens of new interesting diabetes blogs, and gained an incredible amount of new diabetes wisdom. However, during the week I only managed to read a few percentages of the total blog posts listed. I really want to create a habit of reading more of these blog posts.<br />
<div>
<br /></div>
What's key when creating a habit, provided motivation is there already? We need to make it simpler to take that action. So, to make it as easy as possible to read new blog posts, I decided to create a simple web page that takes me to a new blog each time I visit it. It would not be that complicated to navigate to the Diabetes Blog Week pages, select a topic, and a new blog from there. However, I didn't believe I'd be able to make that sequence of actions into habit, and wanted to make it even simpler.<br />
<br />
Originally, I considered a service that would take me through the blog posts one by one, in the order they were entered in Diabetes Blog Week, topic by topic. Then I thought it could be more fun if there be some randomness in the process. So instead, the service I created now randomly selects one of the posts entered so far. I've bookmarked that page, and just now made it my home page, so whenever I'm going online, I'll always have new diabetes reading available. You can do that too. The address is:<br />
<br />
<h3>
<a href="https://www.sensotrend.com/ThoughtForTheDay/" target="_blank">sensotrend.com/ThoughtForTheDay</a></h3>
<br />
It only took an hour to set this up. Honestly, writing this blog post took more effort. Here again, I think the main point was to keep it simple. In the future, I might include filters to search posts about certain tags or topics. I also may add posts from previous blog weeks, or add a user interface for bloggers to add their content to the service manually. Or anything any of you may think of, that would add value to the service. But first, let's see if this raises any interest.<br />
<br />
Many thanks everyone for the amazing week! And a special thank you to Karen for organizing it all!<br />
<br />
<hr />
<br />
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><span style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="39" src="https://3.bp.blogspot.com/-3KiayXfekrU/U3kTFGPqgjI/AAAAAAAAAJg/bZ80SKlf6q0/s1600/diabetesblogweek.jpg" width="320" /></span></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://www.bittersweetdiabetes.com/2014/05/diabetes-blog-week.html">http://www.bittersweetdiabetes.com/2014/05/diabetes-blog-week.html</a></td></tr>
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<br />Anonymousnoreply@blogger.com0