Many healthcare facilities and hospitals do not own their equipment and medical machines might surprise you. Renting medical equipment can sometimes make more sense than purchasing more expensive equipment like infusion pumps. Hospitals or medical centers may choose to rent an infusion pump for patient treatment for several reasons, including the following.
What is an infusion pump?
Infusion pumps are devices designed to deliver fluids into a patient's body in controlled amounts. You may find medicines, nutrients, and saline solutions in these fluids. As a result, infusion pumps are ubiquitous in health care settings since they are used to administer drugs safely and accurately without introducing the risks associated with manual administration.
Every infusion pump has its purpose, and they come in many different kinds of designs. Among them are a home pump, a large volume pump, an elastomeric pump, and an insulin pump.
Depending on what the pump is used for, the patient's health status, and other factors, the pump can either be operated by a trained medical professional or the patient. You can also use an ambulatory or stationary pump, depending on the patient's needs.
Infusion pumps allow patients to administer fluids in extremely small amounts, which would be impossible manually. Furthermore, infusion pumps can be programmed to administer medicine at specific intervals, allowing patients to have their medication precisely helped.
Additional safety features are also available with infusion pumps, which warn patients and healthcare providers of potential problems with the fluids and the pump itself.
Several pumps include alarms and lights to notify the caregiver if something is wrong; for example, if the air is detected in the tube, an alarm sounds informing them of the problem. Also, a growing number of smart pumps are available to determine whether the configured settings will negatively affect the patient.
Each infusion pump has different features, maintenance, and sanitization requirements, so it's important to know them before purchasing. To learn more about infusion pumps for home use, please get in touch with a Sky Medical Supply sales representative today
Infusion pumps: Renting vs. Buying
A hospital or medical facility will typically own a small number of infusion pumps and rent additional pumps as needed for patient care when they need more costly equipment. Such a strategy has some advantages and disadvantages.
Renting an infusion pump is a good idea
A pump rental program can be offered weekly, daily, or monthly. As a result, you can provide the care you need without incurring the expense of buying a pump.
Companies offering infusion pump rental services will also provide cleaning, calibration, maintenance, and testing services. These services relieve the medical center of many responsibilities of owning an infusion pump.
Renting infusion pumps instead of buying them is indeed a cost-effective alternative. However, you may end up with older models that lack some of the newest features found in modern models. If you are planning to rent an infusion pump, it is always a good idea to become familiar with the model year and the type of pump you will receive.
Infusion pumps: why buy them?
A case can always be made for buying expensive equipment over renting it, just as with any other type of costly equipment. Long-term versus short-term costs are one of the most obvious benefits.
If you plan to rent an infusion pump long-term, your rental fees can add up to more than the cost of a new unit if the upfront costs are greater than those of a short-term rental.
A permanent infusion pump can be integrated into your medical setting when you purchase one. You usually aren't taking permanent measures to integrate an infusion pump with your systems or networks if you rent an infusion pump. In contrast, your infusion pump provider usually assists you with integrating the pump with your internal systems.
A medical facility's type of treatment and patient population will ultimately determine whether it's best to rent or buy an infusion pump.
Maintenance strategies for infusion pumps
Any medical facility's infusion pump maintenance plan should consider the following factors:
- Experience with infusion pumps at the hospital
- How the manufacturer recommends
- Using the equipment involves all the risks
Typically, manufacturers encourage cyclical maintenance, meaning frequent preventative checks are the best approach.
When an infusion pump isn't maintained properly, risks are also involved. The consequences of running these pumps until they fail are hazardous for patients who don't take care of this equipment.
A proactive approach with a maintenance strategy is thus essential for medical personnel.
You must develop a strategy to schedule routine maintenance on IV infusion pumps.
Here is what you should do as a part of your strategy:
Preparing the equipment for use by cleaning
- Ensure all pump parts, including its wheels, stand, and controls, are clean after each infusion. The wheels, in particular, attract a lot of dust:
- Ensure you use disinfecting chemicals, cleaning solutions, and overall cleaning approaches recommended by the manufacturer. EPA-approved products are also available.
- Chemical cleaners that are not approved may damage surfaces.
- Employees should be properly trained in "before-use" cleaning.
How to Clean Your IV Infusion Pump after Using It
- When cleaning after use, the manufacturer's instructions must be followed to protect patients and staff from exposure to chemicals, blood, and bodily fluids.
- Staff must first remove particles and debris from infusion pumps before disinfecting them.
- You might also want to purchase disposable disinfecting wipes or button overlays from the manufacturer.
- It is important to store the infusion pump after use in a storage room or cleaning area.
This is quite a task, as you can see. It would help if you considered whether or not your team has the time to carry out these responsibilities.
Contact one of our sales representatives if you have further questions about renting or buying infusion pumps. Infusion pumps are available from all the top brands. Sky Medical Supply is open all days of the week.
If you need any Infusion pumps, whether to buy or rent in Denver, Colorado, you can contact Sky Medical Supply.