Halyard Health

The types of equipment used in healthcare include:

• Storage and transport medical equipment, including carts, cabinets and other essentials for moving equipment and supplies around a medical facility.
• Durable medical equipment, or DME, which offers patients comfort and therapeutic benefits. Used in hospitals and homecare settings, this type of equipment spans wheelchairs and other mobility devices to beds and ventilators.
• Diagnostic medical equipment, which is used to examine a patient and investigate their condition based on their symptoms. This type of equipment needs to be able to assess a patient internally and encompasses imaging devices, thermometers and stethoscopes.
• Electric medical equipment for monitoring and recording how the body functions. This type spans software and workstations to medication pumps and defibrillators.
• Treatment or procedural equipment for addressing various conditions. This group spans infusion pumps to scalpels and forceps to lasers and surgical technologies.
• Surgical medical equipment for use in invasive procedures. This includes stands, tables and other supports used during surgery.
• Acute care equipment, which applies to daily, routine equipment used in clinics and other medical settings, including for monitoring certain conditions and treating wounds.
• Life support equipment for helping preserve and assist a patient’s essential bodily functions and organ systems. This group covers ventilators and cardiopulmonary bypass (CB) equipment as well as dialysis machines.
• Laboratory equipment used in diagnostic and clinical settings for examining and analyzing samples.

Medical supplies and medical equipment may seem synonymous, but they vary in scope and application. Medical supplies are for general-use and at-home patient care and are frequently disposable in nature. You can often purchase medical supplies in over-the-counter settings, like drugstores.

Medical equipment assists with monitoring, diagnosis, treatment, rehabilitation and other specific uses involving illness or injury. Not only is this equipment not usually disposable, but it generally requires advanced training to use and needs routine maintenance and repairs to function optimally.

The most used medical equipment are items that serve a broad swath of patients. These items include:

• Stretchers
• Defibrillators
• Monitors
• Sterilization equipment
• Electrocardiogram (EKG/ECG) machines
• Surgical and anesthesia equipment

Anticipating the range of patients and conditions addressed, clinics and similar medical settings need:

• Sterilization and janitorial equipment
• Diagnostic care equipment
• Supplies for drawing blood
• Equipment for measuring patient weight and height
• Defibrillators
• General-purpose carts
• Emergency equipment
• EKG/ECG equipment
• Exam tables
• Appropriate lighting
• Personal protective equipment
• Sharps containers
• Monitors and imaging equipment
• Supplies for break and waiting room areas
• Mobility devices

Medical supplies are integral to patient care, from wound healing to rehabilitation to disease treatment. Supplies and equipment further help professionals, including doctors, dentists, nurses and assistants, carry out their jobs and remain protected against various exposure hazards.