Home Medical Equipment presents a major opportunity for patients to quickly recover in-home environment without spending money on hospital facilities

 

Home Medical Equipment is a specialized category of medical devices used for patients whose primary care is being administered from a private or public facility managed by an individual or family member without specialized training or experience. However, as more patient control is transferred to the home, this category has grown to include a wider range of equipment and supplies than in any other past period. It is increasingly becoming accepted by both health care professionals and patients that DME can be applied in more situations and with more types of devices than ever before.

The three basic types of DME are extracorporeal shock wave therapy (ESWT), cranial ophthalmic surgery (COS), and electrotherapy. Within each type, there are four primary types of medical devices. These types are commonly grouped into four names general medical device (GND), appliances and supplies (AS), electrotherapy devices (ET), and furniture and home medical equipment (HME). Most Home Medical Equipment manufacturers provide these categories as a standard, although there are a few manufacturers who specialize in particular types of DME.

The primary types of home medical equipment most frequently purchased by consumers are GND's. These are apparatus such as the common EKG, heart monitor, blood pressure cuff, and ultrasound machines. They are generally used by health professionals for diagnostic purposes and not for therapeutic or cosmetic purposes. The two primary European types of GND's are European electrotherapy and the European electrocardiograph. These are sold over the counter and can usually be obtained directly from the manufacturer of the appliance or supplier. Some of the home medical equipment that falls into the high-risk devices category include defibrillators, cardiac monitors, and implantable cardio-transmitters. These are generally required for emergency situations but are considered high-risk devices. Recently, in December 2020, Sodexo India, in collaboration with the Association of Healthcare Providers (AHPI), launched India’s first bio-medical equipment mobile application.