Dexcom CGM and VOOM

[vanderty]

I am hoping someone with a bit more cruising experience can help me. My son is T1D and has a Dexcom CGM that we use the Dexcom Follow App to monitor his BG. Last year when we cruised on the Enchantment we both had to purchase the VOOM wi-fi package for him to use his Dexcom app and for me to follow it. The problem is the VOOM kept timing out and we had to keep re-connecting. This was a problem at night. We have two cabins and with the Wi-Fi timing out and his high activity levels on a cruise I worry about lows in the night.

 

 

 

Does anyone have a solution so the wi-fi doesn't time out and we don't get the dreaded no data?

 

 

 

I would really appreciate the advice

 

 

Thanks!

[Clarea]

The best performance WiFi will be on Quantum, Oasis, and Freedom class ships, plus Majesty.

[blackshirt]

By time out, you mean getting logged off of VOOM, right? The time out is supposed to be due to inactivity. If it is possible to run some other app that is actively using data, the time out should not occur. Even a sports app constantly updating sports scores would prevent any time out.

[vanderty]

Yes, getting logged out of VOOM. The Dexcom app retrieves data every 5 minutes so it is always running and updating. Yet we still were logged off.

[Biker19]

^ others have reported automatic logouts like that, even with activity. I think this depends on the ship and the way their WiFi is set up. I don't know of a way around it, but you may want to ask some IT folks on board.

[brookie848]

Are your cabins connecting/next to each other? This would only help with the night issue, but would it be possible for your son to use his phone to receive his blood sugars and you use the stand-alone receiver? Or will the signal not travel through the cabin walls?

 

I also have a Dexcom and the range for me is much more than 25 feet it says, but walls can cause an issue.

 

Also, has he switched to the G6 yet? I haven't and am wondering if the range for that one is any better.

[vanderty]

I called about switching to the G6 today and we have to wait until September because of insurance. I am wondering if the receiver option will work. We typically don't use the receiver at all b/c the iPhone Follow app works so well.

[elitegoodguy]

I'm not familiar with what this piece of equipment is. Does the equipment write to the App and the app goes to the internet? Or does it write to the internet and the app pulls the information.

 

If your phone and the Dexcom talk directly to each other without the need for internet then you could probably get by with one of those travel routers to create a wireless hotspot that both your phone and the Dexcom can connect to. Then they could see and talk to each other without even needing to login to Voom.

 

If it requires internet then as others have suggested a constant internet source might be better. I'd do something like Google Play Music to "listen" to a radio station at all times, but you can turn the volume down so you don't hear it. Then it'll have a continuous network source.

[brookie848]

I called about switching to the G6 today and we have to wait until September because of insurance. I am wondering if the receiver option will work. We typically don't use the receiver at all b/c the iPhone Follow app works so well.

 

I generally only use my receiver when travelling (and I don't want the annoying pop-up to appear asking me to connect to a network).

If you do switch to the G6, a few things my PA told me: First, you can't "cheat" the system and re-set the sensor. So, if you are trying to extend your sensor by a day or two (for travel or medical reasons), there is no way of doing that. Also, if your sensor readings are off, the G6 isn't as amenable to adjusting things by putting in a glucose reading as the G5 is.

 

For the other poster, the sensor talks to the phone or receiver using Bluetooth, but there is an app that uses the Internet to then send those glucose readings to others. That is what the parents want to use while on the ship, but if the sensor will talk to the separate receiver through cabin walls, they may not need to worry about that.