The medical equipment rental system is a unique offering from healthcare institutions. They provide tested and sanitized machinery, beds, and other equipment for the patient’s care. This is better than buying new equipment and it is rendered useless due to non-activity after some time. 

Most of the time you will find hospitals and clinics offering medical rental equipment services. This is done to ensure the patients that they will be receiving authentic and tested equipment. As hospitals and health systems provide access to essential medical devices, they help ensure patient’s safety and access to the necessary life-saving equipment. 

In this blog, we will learn more about the reasons to get medical equipment on rent and its benefits for patients and their caretakers. 

How does Medical Equipment Rental Work? 

Renting medical equipment is similar to renting a house, car, etc. When renting medical equipment, you will pay a fixed daily, weekly, or monthly cost to use the equipment. You can return the equipment when not needed. 

In general, organizations in this business offer a discounted rate for long-term usage as compared to renting equipment for a day or a week. The details around the agreement including the number of days, repairs, damages, etc. are decided upon by both parties at the time of agreement. 

Types of Medical Equipment Available for Rent

Patients recovering at home or who have opted for home care services may need different types of medical equipment. Hence, depending on their needs, the health systems or hospitals lease or rent the same, with some conditions set for the usage.

The type of medical equipment on rental includes;

• Hospital Beds: All types of hospital beds including simple to modern machine-operated ones are available for rent. Patient caretakers can choose the type of bed depending on their needs. 

• Wheelchairs: While simple push wheelchairs are common, only a few providers have electric wheelchairs on rent.

• Oxygen Machines and Cylinders: Whether for emergencies or regular usage, oxygen machines, cylinders, and oxygen concentrators are available for rent. While the rent for the machine is fixed, the oxygen cylinders need refilling. Make sure to ask about the refills when renting oxygen-related recruitment. 

• Cardiac Monitors: Cardiac monitors measure and record a patient’s heart rate, rhythm, and blood pressure, among other vital signs. Cardiac monitors are often required to constantly monitor a patient’s health and access the vital information. Make sure to rent the right type of cardiac monitor as multiple types are available depending on the condition and usage. Moreover, patients battling with life-threatening conditions, get monitors that can send alerts and alarm the caretakers about any drop in vital health signs. 

• Pulse Oximeter: Pulse oximeters measure and display the amount of oxygen in the blood. During COVID, these oximeters were high in demand as they were required to monitor one of the most vital signs. A non-invasive device, they can be easily availed from health systems and hospitals. For pulse oximeter medical equipment rental, ensure to get the one with the settings and features you will need. You can also ask the concerned doctors and nurses for the type required for your purpose. 
• Infusion Pump: Infusion pumps are required to pump and deliver medications, and nutrients in the form of fluids into the patient’s body. These pumps help control the flow and quantity of the fluids as prescribed by the doctors. In addition to pumping the requisite fluids, an infusion pump helps with managing chronic conditions including heart conditions, diabetes, etc. With infusion pumps, several options are available including portable pumps and advanced ones, which are relatively less portable. Moreover, the caretaker needs a basic level of training to operate the pump and infer the readings.

• IV Stands: A wide range of IV stands are available with the medical equipment rental organizations. You can choose the stand as per the requirements.
• BP Apparatus: Renting a sphygmomanometer may not seem important but it’s a critical equipment for assessing a patient’s health. A simple and non-invasive device, a blood pressure machine is helps monitor and track changes in the blood pressure. Different types of BP apparatus are available including manual, digital, and automatic. While renting, prefer machines that are certified by the American National Standards Institute or the British Hypertension Society.

• Glucometer: Glucometers are essential medical equipment you can get on a rental basis to monitor a patient’s sugar levels. It helps track blood sugar levels and monitor changes through regular at-home tests. 

While renting a glucometer, ensure a few things like its ease of use, compatibility, and setup. Opt for the equipment that is easy to use and set up. 

In addition to the above equipment, you can also find healthcare organizations renting suction machines, CPAP or BiPAP machines, lifts, nebulizers, pressure mattresses, breast pumps, etc. As these are medical devices, improper and untrained usage can also be detrimental. 

Benefits of Renting Medical Equipment

For patients and their caretakers, renting medical equipment is beneficial in several ways. 

1. Flexibility in Usage: You can rent the medical equipment required for any time period without any lock-ins or extra costs. Depending on the patient’s health, condition, and recovery schedule, you can rent the required equipment. 

2. Cost Optimization: Medical equipment is expensive and adds to it, and the medication and professional expertise required with them further increase the cost. With renting, you can save the initial cost required to secure the equipment. Mostly, the hospitals are into medical equipment rental; they can also provide the professional assistance and training required to operate the machines. 

3. Latest Equipment: Here again, costs are a big motivator to rent medical equipment. Often new versions of different equipment come to the market asking the users for a bigger price than before.  Spending to get the same equipment again, but with a few changes is redundant. However, when renting, it’s easier to switch to the new from the old without increasing the rent. 

4. Maintenance and Repairs: Suppliers set proper guidelines and responsibilities in the contract when renting medical equipment. They can also address sudden breakdowns and performance issues quickly to ensure glitch-free performance. This is opposed to buying the equipment and facing performance issues, only to find that you need to replace the old equipment with a new one. 

Most important of all, with medical equipment rental you will get access to professional healthcare technology and be able to take care of your loved one’s health efficiently. 

Guide to Finding the Best Medical Equipment Rental Service

It is equally important to find the right medical equipment organization for renting, as it is to get authentic equipment. Here are the factors to consider;

Equipment Versions

It’s important to look for a vendor that is abreast with the latest innovations and improvements. Equipment rental organizations that get innovative equipment can serve you better and provide access to the latest equipment. 

Go for the suppliers who can offer access to the latest technologies at the right time and continuously. 

Reliable and Accountable

You need a reliable service provider who can take swift action during emergencies and provide the equipment you need with urgency. Choose the suppliers who are ready to take ownership and be accountable for their promises. 

While it is not easy to know about any service provider before actually dealing with them, you can, however, check their reviews online. 

Affordable Costs

Choose medical rental equipment organizations with an affordable pricing structure. With all sorts of medical expenses, you must try to save costs whenever possible. Do some research and compare the prices of different suppliers. 

Don’t just go for low costs. Instead, choose the suppliers that can offer the best value for money. 

Maintenance Schedules

Always ask for the maintenance preparation and schedules of the health system you are choosing to rent the equipment. Poorly maintained and serviced equipment can provide false positives and faulty readings affecting the care the patient needs. 

Conclusion

Medical rental equipment services are required when you have patients recovering at home or have opted for elderly home care services. The rented equipment is easy to obtain, requires zero initial cost, and has less overhead costs. 

At Santokh Home Care, we provide medical equipment on rent while ensuring their proper maintenance and at low costs. Get in touch with us today to know more.