Uplifting Market

With an aging population opting for home care over hospital and nursing home care, the demand for lifts and transfer devices will continue to rise, experts say.

“Pure demographics say we’ll see the home care lift segment grow,” says Fran Spidare, product manager for patient transport for Invacare.

Further, this category gives HME providers the opportunity to expand cash business with products such as stairlifts, bath lifts and non-reimbursible patient lifts that can make the lives of patients — and their caregivers — easier.

Safe Handling

Greater awareness about preventing caregiver injuries is one major factor driving expansion of the lift and transfer device market, according to manufacturers.

As aging adults are living at home longer, the number of informal caregivers who help to take care of them also is rising. About 52 million people in America provide care at home for an adult who is disabled or chronically ill, according to a U.S. Department of Health and Human Services study on informal caregiving. Another HHS study on family caregiving indicates that many informal caregivers are seniors themselves: 30 percent are age 65 or older.

The uptick in informal caregiving also increases the likelihood of injury to the caregiver, with lifting and moving patients being one of the main causes of injury.

A study of informal caregivers by St. James’s University Hospital, Leeds, UK, found that out of 46 caregivers, 31 injured themselves while lifting and handling patients at home. Eight were temporarily unable to care for the patient as a result of their injuries, and 16 patients were injured themselves while being moved by their caregivers.

While institutions have been taking greater precautions to prevent lifting injuries among nursing staff, it has been more difficult to get the word out to family caregivers, manufacturers say. But as education increases, many are realizing that it is not safe — for themselves or the person they’re caring for — to try to lift a patient on their own.

“No caregiver should try to move a resident because they can injure their backs. It doesn’t matter if you’re 45 or 65 — you’re going to want to use a lift,” says Tom Ellis, vice president, extended care group, Drive Medical.

“There’s a greater awareness for caregiver safety, and that’s creeping into the home environment,” Spidare says. “People are beginning to understand that repetitive lifting takes a traumatic toll on the person doing the lifting, and from a patient’s perspective, it’s much safer for a patient to be moved in a lifting device.”

Options Abound

While basic hydraulic lifts are among the category’s biggest sellers because they are the most affordable, Ellis says battery-powered lifts are gaining in popularity because they are easier to use.

Many payers won’t reimburse a battery-powered lift, but some customers — especially elderly caregivers — are willing to pay the difference because they don’t require someone to physically pump a hydraulic lift, he says.

Stand-up lifts are not always fully reimbursable either, but they, too, have been picking up momentum within the past few years, Spidare says.

For patients who are able to bear some weight, standing up while being transfered gives them circulatory and respiratory benefits that they don’t get from a full-body lift, she says. It also gives the patient the psychological benefit of standing.

“You’re not being fully dependent but you’re participating [in your care],” Spidare explains.

The lift also benefits the caregiver because it’s much easier to toilet someone with a standing lift, she says. With full-body lifts, toileting can be more complicated because the patient needs to be positioned in just the right place, and the sling opening needs to be placed over the toilet in just the right spot, she notes.

However, the full-body lift is still more appealing for many customers because it offers more flexibility for those who may have a deteriorating condition, Spidare says. “People are looking ahead,” she says. “[They are asking,] ‘Will I still be able to use this piece of equipment down the road?’”

Ceiling lifts are another segment of the market showing growth. One of the main appeals is that these lifts don’t take up space in the room, Spidare says. And while most lifts can be difficult to move over carpeting, ceiling lifts can be used no matter what surface is in the room.

As for the slings that are used with any of the lifts, one-size-fits-all won’t cut it anymore, manufacturers point out. A variety of sling types in all sizes are available now, which is both a “blessing and a curse,” Spidare says.

“For the patient, it’s great to have the size that’s appropriate to you,” she says. “But for the provider, it’s difficult because they’re going to be challenged with stocking and having that particular- sized sling.”

Design Details

With products that are more retail-based, such as stairlifts, aesthetics are becoming increasingly important.

For example, Bruno Independent Living Aids offers seven different fabrics so the customer can match the lift seat with their home decor. The unit also is designed so it doesn’t look like “a chair sitting on a box,” says Mike Krawczyk, marketing manager.

“By making the product attractive so it really compliments the home, it takes away the stigma people may feel [by having a stairlift],” he adds. “When they have friends and family over, the stairlift is not an eyesore, it’s an attractive element.”

Some manufacturers also are making stairlifts with seats that fold up so they don’t impair the use of the stairs by other people, says Bill Filer, director of sales and marketing for Summit Lifts.

Aside from design, many consumers desire a lift that’s not complicated to use, he explains. The more bells and whistles that are added to the lift, the more expensive — and out-of-reach to the average consumer — it gets.

With stairlifts costing from a few thousand dollars to more than $10,000, keeping the price down is key, manufacturers say. A number of new entrants have come onto the market recently, so competition and manufacturing techniques have helped lower the price in recent years, Filer says.

“What [consumers are] looking for is something that’s going to get them up and down the stairs in an efficient manner but offered at a reasonable price,” he says.

Step Up Cash Sales

As the prices of stairlifts decline, it appears more consumers are willing to hand over cash for these products, their makers say.

“It’s a cash business, and it’s a growing business,” says Krawczyk, adding that Bruno was 10 percent ahead of its target for 2007.

“With competitive bidding and other things DME providers are having to go through, finding some way to augment cash sales is really an attractive option,” says Filer. “If stairlifts continue to be a cash sale, they will be attractive to consumers as well as providers.”

Krawczyk says providers should keep in mind that stairlifts are not only for those who lack mobility but also for individuals who suffer from arthritis, diabetes or others who find it difficult to go up and down the stairs.

“They may not be classically disabled, but it’s an important convenience that gives them back their whole house,” he says. “Before they put in the stairlift, they’re relegated to the main floor. If they don’t want to move to a one-level building or home, they’ve lost half of their home.”

Manufacturers are even more optimistic about the future of the market as baby boomers, who have more disposable income, begin to need such products.

“The sky’s the limit. Baby boomers want it, and they want it now. And they do have the funds,” says Gary Schwartz, director of sales for Harmar Mobility.

Advice for Providers

One of the biggest challenges to selling lifts and transfer devices is letting people know these products are out there. For example, most consumers don’t even know products like bath lifts exist, says Schwartz.

Providers can help bring awareness by showing lifts in display windows, Spidare says. Inside the store, she recommends showing a video of someone using a lift so people will understand how the products can help.

When providers are selling a lift, salespeople need to ask as many questions as possible to find out what product will be most appropriate for the patient, manufacturers recommend. Some information they need to find out includes:

• Weight of the patient. Will the patient require a bariatric lift?
• Environment of the home. The provider should visit the home whenever possible to see where the lift will be used and look for potential challenges. For example, if there is deep-pile carpet, it may be difficult to push a floor lift around, Spidare notes.
• Dimensions of the home. Will the base of the lift fit through the doorway?
• Condition of the patient. Can the patient bear some weight?

For the cash side of the business, Schwartz advises displaying product comparisons in the store. Consumers want to know what’s available along with the features and benefits of each product so they can make a decision, he says.

He also recommends taking advantage of manufacturers’ educational programs to pick up some retail smarts. For example, Harmar has a program for providers that teaches them how to sell and market lifts and set up their stores.

To stand out from their competitiors, Filer says, “HME providers need to be doing things others aren’t.” For example, renting stairlifts is an option that can be profitable for providers and has little competition, he says.

“In my opinion, there are not enough people providing stairlift rental services compared with what the need that is out there,” says Filer. “This is one way providers can really augment cash sales.”

For many customers, stairlifts may be only a short-term need — perhaps someone is rehabbing a hip or has another injury they can eventually recover from — and it makes more sense for people to rent rather than purchase one, he says.

Providers just need to make sure to use units that are suitable for renting, Filer advises, such as products that can adjust to different stairway lengths and change hands from one side of a stairway to another.

Consumers Go Online to Find Out What Can Help

Many of the trends in the patient lift and transfer market don’t reflect directly on the products themselves but the way they are marketed, manufacturers say.

“With the advent of Internet, there’s more knowledge out there of what’s available to consumers, and that’s helping fuel the growth in the industry,” says Bill Filer, director of sales and marketing for Summit Lifts. “That’s significantly changing the landscape of the way stairlifts are delivered and dealers provide them.”

While the majority of baby boomers — many of whom are making the purchasing decisions for their aging parents — are active online, a growing number of seniors also are using the Internet for research in finding out what products are available. According to a 2006 Pew Internet & American Life Project study, 34 percent of Americans age 65 and older go online.

The good news is that consumers are becoming more educated and aware of the products that can help them, manufacturers say. But the bad news is this means more competition from online retailers who market direct to consumers and often sell products, such as lifts, at a discounted price.

If providers are not offering products online, Filer recommends implementing a Web site or some sort of e-commerce component so they can compete. “That’s something everyone is going to have to come to grips with,” he says.

But Mike Krawczyk, marketing manager for Bruno Independent Living Aids, cautions that stairlifts should be installed by the provider instead of the consumer. “We think it’s critically important that products are installed safely and by people who know what they’re doing,” he warns. “If you don’t install them properly, they could be dangerous.”

Experts Interviewed:

Tom Ellis, vice president, extended care group, Drive Medical, Port Washington, N.Y.; Bill Filer, director of sales and marketing, Summit Lifts, Lake Winnebago, Mo.; Mike Krawczyk, marketing manager, Bruno Independent Living Aids, Oconomowoc, Wisc.; Gary Schwartz, director of sales, and Sarah Penix, business development manager, Harmar Mobility, Sarasota, Fla.; Fran Spidare, product manager for patient transport, Invacare Corp., Elyria, Ohio.