With the explosion of online buying opportunities why shouldn’t I get the best deal and purchase my equipment and supplies on line? Generally speaking, the lower the price, the fewer the services that are available. The caution is buyer beware.
With the explosion of online buying opportunities why shouldn’t I get the best deal and purchase my equipment and supplies on line? Generally speaking, the lower the price, the fewer the services that are available. This may be fine for obtaining basic home medical equipment (i.e. bedside commode, shower bench, etc) and supplies (i.e. nutritional supplements, catheters, etc.) but can be problematic for complex rehab technology. The caution is buyer beware especially when using your medical insurance benefit. If you purchase the incorrect equipment often times your medical benefit will be exhausted and any additional purchases or corrections will be your financial responsibility.
Complex Rehab Technology products and services include medically necessary individually configured manual and power wheelchair systems, adaptive seating systems, alternative positioning systems, and other mobility devices that require evaluation, fitting, adjustment or programming. These products and services are designed to meet the specific and unique medical and functional needs of an individual with a diagnosis such as spinal cord injury.
In establishing a person’s need for Complex Rehab Technology products and services, consideration is always given to the person’s immediate and anticipated medical and functional needs. These needs include but are not limited to activities such as: mobility, bathing dressing, eating, cooking, cleaning, shopping, parenting, recreation, functional mobility, positioning, pressure relief, and communication and are addressed to enable the individual to accomplish these tasks safely and as independently as possible in all environments the individual is expected to encounter.
The provision of Complex Rehab Technology is done through an interdisciplinary team consisting of, at a minimum, a physician, a physical therapist or occupational therapists, and a Complex Rehab Technology supplier. The team collectively provides clinical services and technology related services. An individual’s medical and functional needs are identified by the clinical team. These needs are matched to products and configured into custom designed systems by the Complex Rehab Technology supplier with input from the clinical team.
Complex Rehab Technology must be provided by individuals who are certified, registered or otherwise credentialed by recognized organizations in the field of Complex Rehab Technology and who are employed by a business specifically accredited by a CMS deemed accreditation organization to provide Complex Rehab Technology products and services.
Laura J Cohen PT, PhD, ATP
Rehabilitation & Technology Consultants, LLC
I actually had very good success when with purchasing a complex reh manual wheelchair on line from http://www.spinlife.com. The ladt that worked with me was very knowledgable about the chair. I require a minimum of a 20″ seat depth and when I went to order the chair she was worried that that seat depth was going to be too lone for me. Thanks to having made the front page of my local paper not long before this I was able to have her pull the story up so that she could actaully see me in my powerchair and by doing this was able to actually see that the 20″ deep seat was not going to be too long. My suggestion is if you are going to be dealing with an online company find one person that you are comfortable working with and stick with that same person. You can actually be asked to be transferred to that person when you call. This is what i do so that I know that this person knows me and understands what I need.
Great! I think this issue includes a rather large variable- How good and how sincere are the online sellers? They are no different than other sellers. There are 1-800 hustlers and there are onliners who will go the distance. Same as with the brick and mortar sellers.
I think this issue is not so much where you buy a wheelchair but who you are dealing with and who is helping you with it. Many users get help configuring a wheelchair offline (from peers, clinicians, etc) and then purchase it online. Combine the offline help with good online assistance such as you experienced and the odds roll up in your favor. The same goes for offline sales.
It’s a who thing, not a where thing.
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