[Equipment] AutoCPAP w/o insurance - How to let doc have remote access?

[Fats Drywaller]

I'm curious: Does the Dreamstation 802.11 module send only the compliance data, or does it include everything from the SD card? If the latter, that would really be one for Resmed to match in its next generation of machines.

I doubt that either Resmed or Philips is quite used to the idea that there are a lot of patients Out There who are using Sleepyhead to monitor their own therapy from the full data. The companies seem to have been stuck, so far, in the old "doctor, DME, patient" model of division of labor. (If only that worked well. IRL, it seems to be pretty much broken.) So even with the 802.11 module, it's all one-way, isn't it?

Anyroad, that will determine whether your doc can run Sleepyhead on your transmitted data, or whether all that he/she can get from there are AHIs and leak rates and so on, same as Dreammapper.

[Fats Drywaller]

OK, maybe this is getting just a little bit silly (technological overkill), but if you already run a web or FTP server or sshd for any reason, accessible from beyond your LAN, then instead of pushing the contents of the SD card via e-mail attachments, you could let your doctor or nurse pull the data at any time without your intervention. Just put a Flash Air SD card in the CPAP machine, have a script (called by cron) periodically sync a local directory from the card, and give the doc or nurse a login with access to only that directory.

Or, of course (and much more secure), push it to cloud storage every 24 hours and let 'em pick it up from there.

But, also of course, that's what you bought the extra Philips module for to begin with. It just turns out to be unnecessary if you use Flash Air instead, with some custom scripting.

[japers]

I'm curious: Does the Dreamstation 802.11 module send only the compliance data, or does it include everything from the SD card? If the latter, that would really be one for Resmed to match in its next generation of machines.

I doubt that either Resmed or Philips is quite used to the idea that there are a lot of patients Out There who are using Sleepyhead to monitor their own therapy from the full data. The companies seem to have been stuck, so far, in the old "doctor, DME, patient" model of division of labor. (If only that worked well. IRL, it seems to be pretty much broken.) So even with the 802.11 module, it's all one-way, isn't it?

Anyroad, that will determine whether your doc can run Sleepyhead on your transmitted data, or whether all that he/she can get from there are AHIs and leak rates and so on, same as Dreammapper.

I don't actually know what gets transmitted -- yet. I have to presume that less data gets transmitted than is available on the SD card. The Hopkins folks asked me to always bring my SD card when I come in for a follow-up appointment. That would seem to indicate that the data sets might be disparate.

The fact that the Hopkins docs also mentioned SleepyHead was reassuring to me.

[japers]

OK, maybe this is getting just a little bit silly (technological overkill), but if you already run a web or FTP server or sshd for any reason, accessible from beyond your LAN, then instead of pushing the contents of the SD card via e-mail attachments, you could let your doctor or nurse pull the data at any time without your intervention.  Just put a Flash Air SD card in the CPAP machine, have a script (called by cron) periodically sync a local directory from the card, and give the doc or nurse a login with access to only that directory.

Or, of course (and much more secure), push it to cloud storage every 24 hours and let 'em pick it up from there.

But, also of course, that's what you bought the extra Philips module for to begin with.  It just turns out to be unnecessary if you use Flash Air instead, with some custom scripting.

At Hopkins they have an official system to allow patients to view their records and upload outside scans, lab reports, and so on. The official stance is that a patient is to use that, rather than regular e-mail. And doctors are asked to avoid using their personal e-mail accounts for transfer of patient data. Interestingly, the only docs I've known there that break that rule use encryption and won't accept non-encrypted e-mail with patient data in it. Kind of impressive considering what I've seen at other medical institutions.

Insofar as this particular issue is concerned, I've always found that the fewer vendors are involved in something like this, the better. I don't want to give the vendor of my AutoCPAP an excuse for any kind of failure. If it's all their system, then they can't point at me and say, "The code monkey botched it!"

 

As long as I've got the thing on an isolated network segment and behind a firewall, I'm content.

Will be off the air, probably until tomorrow some time.

Again, Fats, thank you so very much for your help. You and dmeRT have made today simpler for me.

[japers]

I'm just reporting back to let those who helped me know that everything has gone very well. AHI went down quickly and is now solidly below 3, and I'm very comfortable with the DreamStation APAP and the DreamWear under-the-nose mask other than oral dryness.

The only downside has been that the DreamMapper app has been very awkward to use. I often have to make several tries to retrieve and display the previous night's data. Sometimes it says it has retrieved new data but doesn't display it. Hours later it may say that no new data was found, and then displays the data it previously claimed to have downloaded but refused to display. In addition, it has refused (so far) to show my first night's data and my 28th night's data. No idea why those two were affected. I hope the data wasn't actually lost.

Now the DreamMapper app tells me it will be "unavailable" for a couple of hours on the 30th (tomorrow) so that the system can be upgraded. I hope the dust will settle soon.

I have been so busy this month I haven't had time to install SleepyHead and play with it. I want to wait until I have a few hours for the task.

In the meantime, I should mention that I found an online retailer back in December that had very low prices for systems and for equipment and supply bundles. They don't have contracts with insurers, but that's an advantage for me considering the quality of the policies my insurer uses for dealing with durable medical equipment of this type. Using my insurance would have made this system cost almost 5 times as much as it wound up costing me from this online store. (No, not an exaggeration.)

The store in question was not on the list posted here on the board. I think I read somewhere here that new members aren't supposed to suggest equipment suppliers. (I can see why that would be a prudent policy for the board, to prevent "drive-by" advertising and such.) I'll just say that these folks provided quick service, and they even provided me a special bill with details included to help me get reimbursement from the insurance company. That's not part of their business model, but they seemed eager to do it anyway. This was after I already made my purchases! I'd love to introduce some of the DMEs in my area to that concept of customer service!

Thanks to those who helped me. I just wanted you to know that it is working out well for me.

Best,
japers

[Sleeprider]

Dreammapper will never have the chops of Sleepyhead http://www.apneaboard.com/forums/Thread-...stallation

Feel free to drop the name of the supplier you got a deal from and we can consider it. Avoid using a link or any part of one like .com. Glad things are generally working out, and give Sleepyhead a try.

[japers]

I'll get around to installing and testing SleepyHead as soon as I have a little time. My sleep specialists at Hopkins use it, so using it certainly makes sense for me to use it. It's also FOSS, so it's in the Debian repository and will work with almost any GNU/Linux or BDS I want to use. (I'm in the process of switching from Debian after about 20 years.)

The business with whom I dealt is:

[b]Help Medical Supplies[/b]

555 Madison Avenue, 5th Floor STE 545 [b](Appointment needed)[/b]
New York, NY 10021
United States of America

Their Web address is the three words of the name concatenated (without caps, of course) with dot com added.

I was impressed that they were so quick to offer help with my insurance company. They told me that they don't work with insurance companies because they could see that it would lead to excessive charges for their customers. But, despite the fact that my month-delayed request by phone today for help with insurance fell well outside their business model, they were courteous and quick to respond. I called after noon, and the fellow I talked with asked me if I would be okay with waiting until later today for the paperwork! Holy Ned! I can't get anything done that quickly in my locale, much less something that actually requires a little effort. I got the invoices I needed about 45 minutes after their closing time. Seems suspiciously like very good service to me.

Another nice thing is that every time I've called during business hours (except at lunch time) I've been answered by a helpful human being.

I'm tickled by them. My experiences with local durable medical equipment suppliers in my immediate area was just horrible. And I read a story on NPR that indicated that my experience was far from unusual.

Thank you for your help!

Best,
japers

[Sleeprider]

I'm sure HelpMedicalSupplies appears to be a very supportive and good DME. I don't see any support for insurance invoicing, but the fact they worked with your insurance is a huge bonus. That might not be true in all or most cases. For folks that are out of pocket, they are competitive on Philips and Resmed auto CPAPs, but about 40-50% higher in price than Supplier #33 and 20% higher than Supplier #2 on more advanced bilevel and bilevel with backup models. There are many bundled packages with SoClean or mask kits. They appear to have lower prices than most supplier list vendors in general. They support manufacturer warranties and look like a top-notch legitimate supplier.

Thanks for the heads up on a potential supplier.

[Gideon]

I also see that they offer CPAP and BiPAP rentals for weekly periods.  At this time it is unknown if a specific model can be selected. Many models are shown visually but I did not see this as online selectable.  Also offer supplemental oxygen equipment sale and rental.  I see this as a possible way to trial a different brand for the self paying customer.

[japers]

I'm sure HelpMedicalSupplies appears to be a very supportive and good DME. I don't see any support for insurance invoicing, but the fact they worked with your insurance is a huge bonus.  That might not be true in all or most cases. For folks that are out of pocket, they are competitive on Philips and Resmed auto CPAPs, but about 40-50% higher in price than Supplier #33 and 20% higher than Supplier #2 on more advanced bilevel and bilevel with backup models. There are many bundled packages with SoClean or mask kits. They appear to have lower prices than most supplier list vendors in general.  They support manufacturer warranties and look like a top-notch legitimate supplier.  

Thanks for the heads up on a potential supplier.

Yes, I chose them because they were cheaper for the particular hardware I needed. I made no attempt to make cost comparisons outside my immediate needs. I was happy with them because of the bundles they offered that fit my needs, the excellent e-mail and phone support, and (oddly enough) an almost hilariously helpful answering service person who climbed mountains to help me -- and then asked me what else she could do for me! I have no idea of the size of the operation. I think I have talked with a different person every time I've contacted them, but they come across like a Mom & Pop outfit. Very friendly.

I hope they'll be useful to some members of the board. I could see that we have a wealth of what appear to be great suppliers.