Callaghan also refers customers to General Biomedical Services, Inc. in Kenner, LA. Anna Ortega, Sales and Marketing Manager, says that unlike some companies that sell "as is," all General Biomedical's respiratory equipment - ventilators and anesthesia machines - undergoes both operational as well as cosmetic restoration. "Our pieces are disassembled, components are replaced or repaired and circuit boards are tested and calibrated before the equipment is rebuilt according to the manufacturer's specifications," says Ortega. "We also outfit pieces with our standard accessories and each system and function is tested in our laboratories over a 72 hour period before it is shipped to any client. General Biomedical equipment arrives with an operational verification procedure checklist (OVP), a guarantee of satisfaction and a 90-day warranty."
David Ogren, president of OMED of Nevada, Reno, NV, a distributor of surplus medical electronic equipment, has been serving retail, wholesale and end user customers for over 40 years. His company purchases truckloads of medical equipment from hospitals and other facilities, and much of the time it includes respiratory apparatus. OMED of Nevada will also find equipment for hospitals, surgery centers, homecare facilities or for other refurbishers. "Before any respiratory equipment is placed in inventory, it is cleaned, inspected for operational condition and classified in one of the following stages: "Patent Ready," "As Is," or "As Is Working Complete, No Broken Parts," says Ogren. "A patient ready piece of equipment (like a PLV102 portable volume ventilator by Respironics) is complete with a PM safety sticker, meeting all current manufacturer performance standards."

Ogren explained that the market for selling any previously owned equipment, like ventilators and respirators, could be outlined on a bell curve. "The more technologically advanced the hospital, the more state-of-the-art the equipment is," says Ogren. While that may sound redundant, "technologically advanced" also relates to the type of training the medical staff has received. This training and the related technical equipment are also subject to available capital equipment budgets.



"When equipment is replaced in a couple of years by new upgrades, along comes OMED of Nevada to purchase the items and then perhaps sell them to a community hospital," says Ogren. "That hospital will next pass them on to a clinic, outpatient boutique or a privately owned hospital, then on to an international hospital with an emerging health care program not as sophisticated as the 'top guns' in the U.S." According to Ogren, the older the equipment, the farther down the chain it goes. "We even sell ventilators to veterinarians and other biomed equipment that has been refurbished," says Ogren. "The market for us is wide open, and business is good."

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