Running a healthcare facility comes with a handful of complications. Every day, tons of wastes are generated in a medical facility, including disposables such as sterile needles and other medical equipment, ranging from IV poles to Ultrasound Machines that have broken down or lost their functioning capacity.

According to reports, an approximation of 5.9 million tons of wastes is generated per year, alone in the US. This leads to a huge toll on the environment since a lot of carbon footprint is generated surrounding landfills where the wastes are discarded.

Again, the high prices of medical equipment add up to the overall expenditures of the healthcare organizations and often result in unnecessary patient care costs that are difficult for certain people to bear.

The need for a solution to cut down unnecessary procurement costs as well as reduce medical wastes is now met by a single process: Refurbishment of used medical supplies.

A piece of refurbished medical equipment is a restored device that can be used in medical facilities and is always good as new. Refurbishing is done through different processes, such as reconditioning, repairing, installation of certain software/hardware updates, and replacement of worn parts; all without changing the intended functioning of the original device.

Benefits of Using Refurbished Medical Equipment

There are multiple perks that follow using refurbished medical products. Some of them are as under:

1. Cost-Saver: Inpatient Hospital Care has been proved to be quite costly, which is where refurbished products come in. They’re available at a fraction of the cost of the new products, and also bears the load of repetitive procurement of fresh supplies.
2. Eco-Friendly: Medical Supplies and Equipment disposal is hardly eco-friendly, and the continuous piling up of medical wastes is just another step towards a hazardous environment. The buying and use of refurbished medical equipment help in reducing the carbon footprint released for your business.
3. High-Quality Products: Now, one can buy cutting-edge medical devices from reliable medical device companies at affordable prices. The products are meticulously tried and tested before displaying them on the market.
4. Efficient ROI: To ensure a strong return on investment(ROI), healthcare facilities with limited funds and declining reimbursements often find the option of refurbishment as a cost-reducing alternative to purchasing new equipment. The useful life of a device must exceed its depreciation life for an efficient ROI, which is possible only when a hospital invests in a safe, durable, reliable, and well-maintained piece of refurbished product.
5. Warranties: Almost all the refurbished products come with parts and labor warranty facilities. The warranty may range from 90 days up to one year, depending on the device. One can also purchase an additional warranty with extra payment.

Various non-profit organizations such as the Partners for World Health (PWH) have taken up the responsibility to collect used medical supplies and equipment from healthcare facilities and refurbish, package, and ship them for redistribution in healthcare organizations, gated communities, and individuals in need.

In order to expand the widespread use of re-distributed and refurbished medical products, Medpick, an online medical supplies company, has started a platform, Second Life. Here, Medpick collects used, refurbished, and as is medical supplies and equipment from manufacturers, healthcare facilities, and other organizations. Further, it sorts, re-packages, and re-distributes them to hospitals, laboratories, gated communities, and individuals in need.

The pros of using refurbished medical supplies have successfully outweighed the risks if any. Smart Purchases such as refurbished products can help make healthcare accessible to a few, who could not afford it due to expensive primary patient care costs.