Type 1 diabetes sufferers can now have insulin pumps installed at their Bendigo campus.

Until now, patients wanting an insulin pump travelled to Melbourne with considerable outpatient expenses.

Bendigo resident Wendy Ferris will be one of the first to take advantage of the new, local service when she has her pump replaced on November 28.

"When I first had the insulin pump installed five years ago, I had to go to Melbourne to have it inserted," she said.

"I spent four days there for surgery and training. Then I had to keep in contact with the hospital every day for about a month.

"It's good I don't have to go back down there now."

The insulin pump mimics a normally functioning pancreas.

A syringe is loaded inside of the pager-like machine which gradually releases insulin through a tube, effectively replacing four injections each day.

"The pump uses a fast acting insulin and just pumps out a dose that has been calculated for me," she said.

Wendy still has to keep track of carbohydrates and release extra insulin to compensate for exercise, but the pump suits her lifestyle better.

"The first day I went on the pump, I threw the syringes in the bin – I just knew the pump was going to work for me," she said.

"From the moment it was put in and I clipped it on, it was never a problem."

Wendy said the insulin pump does not suit every diabetic, candidates must be comfortable with the technology and dedicated to monitoring the condition.