This article is from in the December 2007 issue of DOTmed Business News. A list of registered users that provide sales & service can be found at the end.

In the past five years, traditional, electronically controlled hospital beds underwent a metamorphosis. No longer simply a place of rest, today hospital beds play an integral part in patient care, its mattress, frame and sidebars loaded with software tracking a patient's status, weight, movement and safety, even delivering certain therapeutic care. Driven by patient safety issues, an ongoing
nursing shortage, and a need for more efficient reimbursement, hospital beds are now medically and economically alert.

"Our beds are not just a frame and a motor," says Andy Rieth, VP/investor relations, global branding & communications, Hillenbrand Industries. "We now have surfaces and software that can communicate and monitor a patient, can deliver various therapies such as pulmonary, cancer, and others, while delivering data to a hospital's mainframe computer where it can be turned into actionable treatment from care managers and clinical consultants."

Hill-Rom, his company's hospital bed division, is widely recognized as the industry leader, and has been in the hospital bed business for over 75 years. Stryker Medical Equipment, the industry's second largest hospital bed competitor, while larger in scale as an overall medical equipment company, has a smaller bed division which, for the past 15 years, has been challenging Hill-Rom's dominance.

According to MD Buyline Intelligence Reports monitoring the medical field, Indiana-based Hill-Rom currently has 65 percent of market share with Michigan-based Stryker Medical 35 percent (although Stryker executives say that number's higher.)




These two major vendors provide hospitals and medical centers with the most-requested bed needs: General Patient and Birthing Beds.

General Patient beds consist of critical care and medical/ surgical beds. Critical Care Beds include varying models and surfaces found in Intensive Care Units and Critical Care Units. Med/Surg Beds are the standard beds found on patient floors outside the ICU. Birthing Beds are part of a hospital's maternity suite where mothers labor, deliver and recover in the same bed.

Depending on the care and requirements needed, hospital bed costs range from $4,000 to $40,000.

"The biggest trend has been the focus on patient safety," Rieth explains, "avoiding pressure ulcers, bed sores or injuries from patients falling out of their hospital beds. All of these issues are very expensive to deal with."

Hill-Rom created its own software, Navicare Patient Safety Solutions, to interconnect its beds' computers with the hospital mainframe computers. On a Hill-Rom bed, when a railing comes down or a patient or bed shifts or moves, such change is noted, so that hospitals can track who was on duty and who responded.

Stryker Beds, one of 13 different divisions within the medical equipment company founded in 1941, prides itself on similar abilities, while including scales built into its bed frames, to weigh and measure any patient moves.

"Stryker was the first to come out with a touch screen monitor for each bed," notes Craig Brookes, product associate, Stryker. "This allows the bed to be monitored for height, brakes, while notifying the nursing staff of any changes (in patient or bed movement)."

Stryker literature describes the company as "The undisputed leader in patient handling and equipment. We are also innovators in creating products that are easier on caregivers by enhancing our designs with smart ergonomic and advanced mobility features."

Brad Schelling of Piedmont Medical, certainly agrees.

"Before Stryker became a viable player in the hospital bed market, 12-13 years ago, Hill-Rom dominated. Now, (the two) share the vast majority of the hospital bed market," Schelling says, adding, "At Piedmont Medical, we offer practical alternatives to expensive, new bed purchases. We provide the same product, warranty and more-for a sharply reduced price."

One boon for hospital bed buying and refurbishing has been a recent surge in construction of new medical centers and hospitals.

"I estimate that 15% of our total revenue was generated by new construction
this year," notes Ray Carter, manager, I.T./internet sales, Hospital Equipment 4U based in Salisbury, NC. "But that number may be more if you consider expansion of existing facilities. That's up approximately 50 percent over last year, taking into account international customers as well."

Damon Dembkowski, VP/sales, Beta Medical, reports that while most of his customers are small surgical centers, clinics and doctors' offices, "we have supplied stretchers to at least 10 new facilities this year which is more than any other year." Miami-based Beta deals in remanufactured, refurbished and used Hill-Rom and Stryker beds.

"We've seen a surge in specialty hospitals," adds Hill-Rom exec Rieth, "orthopedic, vascular, cancer centers and specialty hospitals need a lot of what we sell."

Two major challenges: Competition from China and Small Plastic Parts.

Notes Piedmont sales executive Schelling: "We've recently seen a surge of patient room furniture from China," he says. "Inexpensive Chinese manufactured bedside stands and overbed tables, in particular, have begun to flood the domestic market. This has posed a challenge to our sales staff in pitching our more expensive, higher quality ware. However, our customers realize you get what you pay for."

Randy Lowers, owner of L&R Services, a Miramar, FL-based independent supplier to doctors' offices, acknowledges that "imported equipment is out there, but does not match American made. Several of my customers have found this out."

In terms of repair, however, plastic components are a challenge, according to Dembkowski.

"You cannot re-use them, you have to buy new plastic parts," he says, adding, "we recently spent $1000 for little pieces of rubber and plastic for one bed."

Lowers, in fact, would like to see more domestic vendors. "There are not enough," Lowers says. "Service companies are few and far between that actually
have reputable techs and sales companies of major equipment are in short supply and that gives accounts less options when buying."

While the Joint Commission of Accreditation monitors national patient safety goals, the Food and Drug Administration generally regulates medical devices.

"Plenty of people sell as-is beds, very few really re-condition beds," says
Bill Montgomery, VP/Bed Techs Inc. of Milan, ID. "We take a lot of pride in
what we do."

Bed Techs' niche is Hill-Rom beds and Montgomery underscores that his
company is the "world's largest supplier of after-market and reconditioned Hill-
Rom beds and parts," adding, "Many of my staff formerly designed and built Hill-Rom beds as electronic engineers."

Most of the re-sale vendors describe business as "good" or "steady & growing." But Hill-Rom's Andy Rieth notes regulatory issues are a concern.

"The FDA constantly looks at new product and quality controls and the Medicare system is constantly looking for new ways to control costs," he explains.
"Hospitals bill for a procedure. Out of that fee it must cover all costs, including purchasing new equipment."

Reimbursement, he adds, is more a regulatory environment issue than a new technology one.

Given the government scrutiny, and the emphasis placed on new medical bells and whistles, hospitals and medical centers are demanding of its hospital furniture, Hill-Rom and Stryker, with long histories of product superiority, look to continue to dominate.

"We recognize Stryker as worthy competition," Rieth admits.

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DOTmed Registered Hospital Bed, Furniture Sales and Service Companies
Names in boldface are Premium Listings.

Domestic
Gus Antus, Ampro International, Ltd, AZ
DOTmed Certified
Damon Dembkoski, Beta Medical, FL
Randy Lowers, L & R Services, FL
DOTmed Certified
William Montgomery, BED TECHS, INC., IN
DOTmed Certified
Shlomo Nadler, MS Medequip, MD
Steve Hall, A&R Wholesale Distributors, NC
Ray Carter, Hospital Equipment 4U, NC
DOTmed Certified
Brad Schelling, Piedmont Medical, Inc., NC
DOTmed Certified
Reuven Kohn, All Time Medical, NY
DOTmed Certified
Gus Kefalas, MST & Associates, VA

International
Frank Irvine, Strutwise Technical Services, British Columbia
Moghaddam Omidinia, Moj International Trading, Iran

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