Need a Lift?

The aging Baby Boomer population is advancing the market for patient lift products, as are the cost advantages of home care versus institutionalized care. Gordon Harmon, senior director of the Home Care division at ArjoHuntleigh, sees patient handling products becoming more home care-friendly, less institutional in design and more ergonomic for a home setting. Products are smaller, lighter, more versatile and designed to blend better into the home environment. The costs of the products have also come down.

Catering to Clients

More elderly people are tapping into their savings for money to finance their desire to remain in their home, equipping it with stair lifts and other patient lift products, says Hans Sigvardsson, senior vice president of sales at Handicare. Customers want the design of products to blend in, be pretty and become part of the home environment, he says, and many HME/DME providers are missing the boat on cash sales. “They are set in their ways, and the market requires new thinking. You have to cater to clients in a different way and have an image as a provider of nice things. You have to put the products in the showrooms and have something to show.”

Harmon sees educating the market as a challenge. “People don’t know our products are out there,” he says. “Customers are amazed to find out what products can do for people in the home.” Misconceptions about cost are another problem. “People think ceiling lifts cost $10,000, but they can cost $3,000.” The Internet provides education to many consumers, which makes it doubly important that HME providers be able to respond knowledgeably to their questions.

There is an ongoing necessity in the patient lift market to educate the public on the value of investing in lift equipment rather than attempting manual lifting, which presents a risk to both caregivers and care recipients. Patient lifts have been shown by research to reduce injuries measurably, says Emily Berman, associate product manager of the Durable Medical Equipment division at Medline Industries. “Research studies support a clear correlation between utilizing mechanical equipment and a reduction in back problems, skin tears and other patient and caregiver injuries.”

Mike Serhan, executive partner at Drive Medical Design and Manufacturing, also sees a lack of education about what products are available, and HME providers aren’t generally recognizing that knowledge gap or filling it with information. Providers also tend to view the market too narrowly and don’t consider broader customer needs such as equipment for the kitchen, bathroom and other rooms of the house, he says.

Emphasis on Fall Prevention

A greater awareness of fall prevention is one way to increase the market for lift products, according to Serhan. He suggests focusing more attention on the large and growing population of homebound persons who are somewhat mobile and just need a little extra help to be independent. Like others in the market, Serhan sees opportunity in the 50-plus Baby Boomer demographic, which will control two-thirds of the country’s discretionary income by 2015 and can afford to invest in mobility and lift products. Traditional “patient lift products” are for a relatively narrow range of customers, he says, and providers should look for broader opportunities related to the aging population and fall prevention.

His figures show that about a third of the population over age 65 fall each year, and the number increases with age. More than half of people age 80 and older will fall, and more than half of senior patients who are discharged from the hospital for a fall-related hip fracture will fall again. Falls are a leading cause of death due to injury in the elderly, and 55 percent of falls happen at home.

Drive Medical products that can help prevent falls range from basic canes to rollators to inexpensive stools. At Medtrade this fall, Drive Medical will introduce a new couch lifting device that fits under the cushion of a sofa to help with standing. “Especially with competitive bidding, providers are overlooking opportunities to help the whole patient,” Serhan says.

Serhan also warns that if HME/DMEs don’t take advantage of sales opportunities related to preventing patient falls, mass retailers and “big box” stores will step in. “The current provider base has much more expertise and knowledge in this area,” he says. “They should be the ones to ring the bell about fall prevention and should be the leading edge of a marketing campaign.”

Designing for the Home

The market is seeing an increase in design components that work in a residential environment (versus a hospital room) to meet lifting needs without costly remodeling or renovations, says Thomas Herceg, president of SureHands Lift and Care Systems. In contrast to a hospital setting that emphasizes standardization, the home-care setting offers greater opportunity to customize the layout of a system and the size and style of a sling.

“A long-term approach to each home-care setting, possibly costing a little more upfront, can pay back in more years of successful patient transfer for users and their caregivers,” he says. “These are very sophisticated systems customized to meet the needs of the consumer.” SureHands provides customized patient lift systems with an emphasis on self-lifting, standing and ambulation. The SureHands Body Support, for example, offers the possibility of self-lifting to individuals who have lost their muscle strength due to age, catastrophic injury or degenerative condition.

HME providers should emphasize training, safety and installation related to patient lifts, including providing regular follow-up and yearly inspections to ensure safety. “If a home medical provider is not equipped to handle these major responsibilities they should consider subcontracting these sales to specialists who are prepared to do so.”

Competitive bidding—and especially the commensurate focus on cost cutting—can be counterproductive in the patient lift market, and viewing patient lifts as a commodity does not provide a good long-term solution. “With the unpredictability of available funding, a case can be made for funding more durable long-term solutions,” says Herceg, who notes that many SureHands customers are still using their original systems after 15 years—an important selling point for cost-conscious consumers.

The Right Lift for Every Patient

Choosing the correct lift based on a patient’s needs is paramount, says Medline’s Berman. Patients who can partially bear weight should use a stand-assist lift, while patients who are completely non-weight-bearing should use a total lift. “Partial weight-bearing patients who utilize stand-assist lifts can continue to utilize their muscles, which helps to slow the rate of deterioration,” he says.

Medline Industries’ hydraulic patient lifts are reimbursable through Medicare, and the lift market was not included in Round 2 bidding. The Bestcare convertible hydraulic lift (reimbursable through Medicare) can be adapted into an electric lift with the cash purchase of a conversion kit including electrical components and the motor, pendant, charger and control box. The approach allows a customer to buy a hydraulic lift and later to upgrade to an electric lift.

Medline offers a three-year warranty on all components. The company’s hydraulic lift bases, masts and booms are built of sturdy hammer-coated steel, and the actuator features an easy-to-use pump for simple patient raising and lowering. The company also has powered lifts for home care, featuring reliable Linak DC actuators.

Berman sees more attention being paid to the design of disposable (single-patient use) slings and greater emphasis on customer needs such as size differences, toileting access and maneuverability. “Slings that are specially designed for a certain task can better address key issues encountered during home care.”

To sell more products, Harmon of ArjoHuntleigh urges HME providers to consider the broader needs of any customer who walks through the door to buy a power wheelchair, for example. “Dealers shouldn’t just be focused on the wheelchair, but also on other things they need such as ramps, lifts or ancillary products.”

Although Medicare covers some low-end floor lifts, funding also comes from state-funded Medicaid (including pediatric lifts), the Veterans Administration, private insurance and cash. “A lot of providers are looking for non-Medicare products,” Harmon says.

ArjoHuntleigh’s variety of patient handling products includes ceiling lifts, as well as active and passive lifts and pediatric and bariatric products. For example, the Maxi Sky overhead ceiling lift can transfer a person from a wheelchair to a bed, toilet or bathtub using a modular ceiling track providing coverage of every square inch of a home, if needed.

The company trains dealers in a three-day class in Chicago covering everything from theory to the practical aspects of installing the equipment down to drilling into concrete and wood, Harman explains, and it is audited every year by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration to ensure proper training of its dealer/installer base.

Addressing Lifestyle Issues

From simple to complex, Handicare’s products make it easier for the caregiver and safer and more comfortable for the patient. At the simple end of the spectrum, for example, its ReTurn product is a “people dolly” with a foot plate that a patient can use to secure the product and pull up using handles. A belt secures the patient in a standing position, and the product can be rolled to any location, whether a bathroom sink or toilet.

Handicare—which acquired RoMedic in 2008—serves all types of applications with a broad product line, including custom ceiling systems. A ceiling lift system can start with a basic straight rail and then expand as the patient’s needs change to involve more-complex elements. “The products allow for a lifestyle that’s closer to how you lived before disease and age hit you,” Sigvardsson says. Home-care systems tend to be more complex than nursing home or hospital systems because those locations have plenty of staff.

Sigvardsson also sees opportunity for providers to embrace the home modification business, either by becoming Certified Aging in Place Specialists (CAPS) or liaising with local builders who are. “You have to appeal to the private-pay people who have their own money with a combination of marketing and offering more products and services those people want,” he says.

How to Meet Changing Needs

Serhan of Drive Medical advocates adopting a systematic approach to meeting a customer’s changing needs over time. He suggests creating packages of devices to serve customer needs at various mobility levels, thereby creating a continuing revenue stream for the provider throughout a patient’s life.

“It’s not just the billable items,” Serhan says. “We should understand what’s going on in the customer’s home and educate them. When the customer comes through the door, the provider should understand the opportunity in front of them.”

Visit Online

ArjoHuntleigh
www.arjohuntleigh.com

Drive Medical Design &
Manufacturing
www.drivemedical.com

Handicare
www.handicarestairlifts.com

Medline Industries
www.medline.com

SureHands Lift &
Care Systems
www.surehands.com