To mark its 25th anniversary, HomeCare magazine honored six individuals who have provided distinguished service to the home medical equipment industry.
“These individuals' commitment to the provider community and their generosity of spirit make them examples of unwavering service to the HME industry,” says HomeCare's publisher, Paisley Stevens.
Sheldon “Shelly” Prial is one of the six Caring Award winners. A registered pharmacist since 1950, Shelly has been involved with the health care industry throughout his career. In 1987, he founded the Homecare Providers Co-op, which is now part of The VGM Group. These days, Shelly continues his health care work as a national and international consultant with HPS Healthcare Management.
“Shelly is a valuable resource for us,” says Jim Walsh, president of VGM Management Limited and general counsel for The VGM Group. “Shelly knows everything and knows everyone. He's been everywhere and he's done everything.”
Recently, Shelly talked about his 50-year career in home health care.
HC: What's great about being in the DME industry?
Shelly: Like any retail business, DME deals day-in and day-out with clients, customers and patients. The difference in DME is that every patient presents a different challenge and a different opportunity. No other business offers this much excitement or fun. And no other business provides the same satisfaction as when a customer or caregiver comes in and says thank you.
HC: What advice would you give to today's HME providers?
Shelly: Opportunities to expand cash sales exist within your community, if you will put forth some effort. Get lists of your local businesses. Then send out a representative from your business — holding in his hand a copy of the Americans with Disabilities Act and the Occupational Health and Safety Act — to visit every company in the community. Each of these businesses has to accommodate the requirements of the ADA and OSHA legislation. Show them, teach them and help them to change. If you saw to it that all of your local businesses were in compliance with ADA and OSHA requirements, you could open a new business by offering the supplies to meet their compliance needs.
HC: What inspires you? Has there been any one event that has convinced you HME is the right industry for you to be in?
Shelly: In 1967, I delivered a custom wheelchair to a 7-year-old girl who had just become a quadriplegic in an accident. After I showed her how to use the wheelchair, she put her arms around my neck and kissed me. I remember that kiss like it was yesterday. If I get down in the doldrums, I think back to that little girl, Elizabeth, who gave me a kiss.
HC: Any regrets?
Shelly: When I founded the Home Care Providers Co-op, I intended to make it an active political group that would work to upgrade the industry. And I had modest success: I got about half of the membership to cooperate. But I would have liked to have seen more participation. The biggest problem in this industry is lethargy, or apathy, and even now I see it pervading the industry. Everybody is waiting for someone else to do something. There is no someone else.
In March, HomeCare will profile Caring Award winner Scott Higley, vice president of sales for Pride Mobility's Quantum Rehab division in Exeter, Pa.
