How to Buy Home-Use Medical Supplies

Whether your need is permanent or temporary, here's how to shop for home-use medical supplies like trapezes, walkers, bathroom aids and adjustable beds. With health maintenance organizations pressing for more home care and recuperation, manufacturers are pursuing this expanding market very aggressively, so smart shopping really pays.

Instructions

Difficulty: Moderate

1. Ask your doctor, rehabilitation therapist, occupational therapist or caregiver what specific pieces of equipment are necessary.
2. Discuss your options with your insurance provider so you know what's covered.
3. Test products from a showroom or exhibition with many choices. The Abilities Expo (abilitiesexpo.com) is the largest.
4. Have a professional rehabilitation expert visit your home. They can advise on constructing a wheelchair ramp, for example, or the positioning of a bathtub grab bar or trapeze over the bed.
5. Zero in on details. Something as simple as crutches can be made much more comfortable (and safe) when correctly adjusted for height. Or, if you lack upper body strength, you may opt for crutches with an adjustable flexible cuff that goes around the forearm just below the elbow and minimizes arm strain.
6. Rent what you need, particularly if your disability is short-term. Or, find bargains on items like hospital beds, patient-lifting equipment, walkers and canes at medical-equipment exchange programs. Some organizations pass donated used equipment on to people with inadequate health insurance coverage.

What to Look For:

• Informed expert advice
• Insurance coverage specifics
• Suitable, reasonably priced equipment
• Good selection

Tips & Warnings

• Check out disabilityinfo.gov, a gold mine of information with helpful leads on all kinds of medical equipment. Also, AbleData.com, which is sponsored by the National Institute on Disability and Rehabilitation Research, has the lowdown on almost 20,000 assistive technology products.