Patients at hospices require special care as they might be going through pains, disorders, and other disease symptoms that could be life-threatening. Depending on the disease, they need certain equipment recommended by a doctor or healthcare provider. Such equipment is called DME.

What Does DME Stand for in Hospice?

Durable medical equipment (DME) is any equipment deemed medically necessary that helps a patient in palliative care to perform their daily routine. It also helps with situations such as transfers and ambulation. For those with disabilities, A DME can enhance safety while lowering the need for caregiver attention. A DME is intended to serve beyond single-use. Oftentimes, it lasts for months and even years. DMEs come in a variety of products ranging from wheelchairs, walkers, crutches, oxygen tanks and commode chairs. There are over 5,000 DMEs in the market and the list keeps expanding every day.

How to buy a DME

The procedure of purchasing DME is somewhat complicated and requires well-coordinated work of all links in the chain. If you're a hospice agency here are some steps you can follow:

The care provider orders the equipment for use by the patient via the interactive portal. At this stage, DME suppliers should pay more attention to DME billing as it's often subject to numerous human errors and delays.

Equipment deliveries are scheduled according to the care providers' request and availability of the patient and their family

When the DME has served its purpose and is no more in use, a pickup is scheduled with the patient's family

An In-house warehouse employee readies the equipment for quick relocation.

Every step in the supply chain is well-synced to ensure that nothing goes wrong with the patient's DME equipment. All personnel are in continuous communication to ensure the smooth delivery of the product. It's usual for the supplier to have a list of trusted DME brands to underline their credibility and reputation for inventorying products from only the most durable medical equipment fabricators in the industry.

Data-driven DME management

Automation is the key to eliminating all operational bottlenecks. When you streamline all of your operations digitally, you reduce human errors by automating the approval and validation processes, enabling you to deliver equipment and items to the hospice much faster. Especially developed digital management platforms and HME DME software save hospice agencies valuable man-hours by simplifying workflow management anywhere you are. From order management to equipment analysis, automation helps you visualize the flow of your DME orders, billings, and completions in real time.

Automate your DME the smart way

NikoHealth is a new-age cloud-based solution that meets all legislative and business requirements. We perform state-of-the art inventory management and tracking of all your DME orders. A dashboard that puts all your affairs at your fingertips takes you to next-gen DME management. Our equipment utilization software supports your decision-making and expense forecasting. Contact us today for data-driven insights into your DME inventory.