CME Insider's Blog Posts

Medical procedure chairs have become a common upgrade for clinics, physician practices, specialty departments, ambulatory surgery centers, and other care environments where patient positioning matters. Traditional exam tables still have a clear role in routine examinations, but many facilities are finding that procedure chairs offer more flexibility for exams, minor procedures, specialty care, and patient transfer needs, especially in light of recent changes to ADA requirements for MDE.

Procedure chair selection is a purchasing decision with operational consequences. Facilities should look beyond the product photo and compare how each chair fits the patient population, procedure mix, available room space, workflows, cleaning protocols, and maintenance expectations.

Before diving in and exploring the finer points of overbed tables used in healthcare, let’s take a minute to answer the basic question:

What Is an Overbed Table?

Short answer: An overbed table is a mobile, height-adjustable table that fits over or beside a bed, stretcher, recliner, or chair so patients and care teams have a convenient flat surface within reach.

Medical carts are easy to overlook until the wrong cart slows down a busy shift.

Healthcare facilities are built to keep care moving. Staff move between departments, between rooms, and increasingly, through workflows centered at the point of care. But while clinical work has become more mobile, more often than not, the spaces where that work happens have not expanded to match.

Biomed Week is a great time to recognize the people and processes that help healthcare technology stay safe, accurate, and ready for use.

As someone who works closely with healthcare equipment and the teams who depend on it, I know biomedical and technical services do far more than respond when something beeps angrily from the corner of a room or refuses to work at the worst possible time.

One of the most important ways we support hospitals and laboratories is by helping reduce risk before equipment ever reaches a patient room, procedure area, testing bench, or storage shelf. That starts with equipment inspections and preventive maintenance.

By August 9, 2026, healthcare facilities must be fully compliant with US Access Board recommendations for accessible medical diagnostic equipment (MDE).

That may sound like plenty of time, but for most organizations, upgrading equipment, standardizing exam rooms, and aligning with evolving guidelines takes longer than expected. Facilities that delay risk higher costs, operational disruption, and potential noncompliance.

Now is the time to start planning.