Many hospitals may be deterred from investing in the equipment because of cost, but NAAFA believes the price tag shouldn't matter.

"Fat people are being charged more for their medical coverage, so why shouldn't they get the proper equipment to accommodate them?" says Howell. "We pay more, so if our equipment costs more, so be it."


Financial commitments aside, experts advise that facilities should not only acknowledge the needs of bariatric patients but also act on them.

"I think education is probably one of the best things for institutions today in the bariatric front," says Medline's Derks. "Understand the demographics and where things are headed, understand how injuries come about, understand what you should do to be proactive, and understand that these injuries are cumulative, and therefore, you need to be proactive in taking precautionary measures and bringing the right equipment in before it's too late," he says.

The updates Muir's facility made to their bariatric equipment proved to be useful, especially when it came to the 700-pound patient.

"We were able to then get a lot of our equipment needs sorted out very specifically and identify what we needed for future admissions," says Muir. "And he did come back. They very often come back a few times through the system. We were ready for him the next time," she says.

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