HOW WELL DO YOU KNOW YOUR products? Referral sources - especially physical, occupational and respiratory therapists - are not about to send their patients to just any home medical equipment provider. They want a provider with some background in their areas of specialty.

"The first thing I look for in a provider is that whoever is on the other end of the phone is knowledgeable about what I'm talking about," says Carol Siebert, a staff occupational therapist at UNC Health Care in Chapel Hill, N.C. "Getting somebody who has some familiarity with the kind of product that I'm talking about and what different options are available is more important than anything in terms of reducing the aggravation factor for me."

Beyond the Basics

THERAPISTS SAY A TELLING SIGN of a dealer's ability to provide the proper equipment is the breadth of its product offering. Providers that carry only basic HME aren't likely to win referrals from therapists, whose patients often require specialized products. Those referrals will go instead to providers that offer such equipment.

"It depends on the situation," says Tom Kallstrom, director of respiratory care services, biometrics and cardiac rehabilitation at Fairview Hospital in Cleveland. "If it's a child with a neurologic respiratory disorder that needs more specialized attention, we may recommend that they go to a certain company that can fulfill that capability."

Therapists also prefer working with HME providers that don't just push product. They expect dealers to give advice and play an active role in determining which devices will work best for patients.

"I want providers to be knowledgeable about potential changes that can be done," says Marcia Margolis, a physical therapist and assistive technology practitioner at Fairview University Medical Center in Minneapolis. "Such as what can be retrofitted if we need it in the future. If different things can interface from one manufacturer to another or if they've seen something in the past that might work with a particular client, obviously I want their input. The other thing that I require is that the rehab tech suppliers be present at the patient evaluation."

Many physical therapists also look for providers that let patients try products before they order them.

Service and Certification

FOR RESPIRATORY PATIENTS in particular, HME providers must be on call at all times for emergencies or if equipment breaks down, say therapists.

"We don't want to call somebody at 2 in the morning and have a ringing phone," says Kallstrom. "Obviously, their business won't be open, but they need to be connected to an answering service that can rapidly get them in touch with the patient. If a patient is connected to a ventilator, it's essential [that he or she] have backup and help."

Beyond good service, rehab providers can make themselves even more attractive if they are certified through an accrediting organization and their staffs have the requisite training and education.

"Three or four of the rehab technology suppliers that I choose to work with have advanced certification," says Margolis. "So it's a preference. I feel there's a difference in quality of the evaluation they're able to provide, and in their ethics, too, as far as how they're going to follow through with patients.

"I teach at a PT and OT school," she adds, "and one of the things that I highly recommend is to use rehab technology suppliers who are certified."

While providers can obtain rehab certification through the National Registry of Rehabilitation Technology Suppliers and the Rehabilitation Engineering and Assistive Technology Society of North America, such certification is currently not available in the respiratory therapy field. Many respiratory therapists therefore prefer dealers to have RTs on staff.

"Certainly the more high-tech it gets, the more crucial it gets that [an HME provider] have qualified respiratory therapists," says Kallstrom. "But to be honest with you, I'd be concerned if I had to deal with a company at any level if it didn't have an RT on staff."

For more information about becoming a certified rehabilitation technology supplier, you can access the NRRTS Web site at www.nrrts.org or the RESNA Web site at www.resna.org.