Even though the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) has been around for more than 25 years, only a small number of medical facilities are in full ADA compliance.
Here are three reasons why you should keep ADA Compliance in mind when purchasing medical equipment:
- Reduce the Risk of ADA Lawsuits
- Improve Safety for Patients and Staff
- Improve Patients Outcomes
Under the ADA, doctor’s offices, clinics and hospitals, must be made accessible to wheelchair users and others with mobility impairments. Not only must parking spaces and bathrooms be accessible, but exam tables, patient weight scales and radiology equipment need to be accessible as well. When a medical facility lacks accessible medical equipment, patients with disabilities often receive inadequate and unequal healthcare, in violation of the ADA.
Common complaints among patients with mobility challenges:
- Exam tables are too high.
- Unable to have weight and height measured.
Many wheelchair users never have their weight or height taken, and are examined by their doctors while sitting in their wheelchairs – even though other patients have access to weight scales and are examined thoroughly while lying on tables. This is not only sub-par medicine, but, as a general rule, this amounts to an ADA violation.
Meanwhile, the government is stepping up its enforcement of the ADA’s access requirements in medical facilities, with the U.S. Department of Justice bringing legal actions against a number of large hospitals and clinics for lack of accessibility. Lawsuits brought by private individuals and class actions are increasing as well.
Fortunately, innovations in the medical equipment field have made accessible medical equipment more affordable and available.
The UpScale, the new height-adjustable exam table with built-in weight scale designed by the ADA experts at Medical Accessibility, is a two-in-one, cost-effective solution to the challenge of ADA compliance. Patients can transfer on to the UpScale at the low height of 17 inches, and obtain a comprehensive medical exam with weight and height measurement, all with one piece of equipment. All of the UpScale’s accessibility features, including scale, height measurement device, transfer bars, and accessible stirrups, come included in the base price.
CME is proud to partner with Medical Accessibility in making this innovative product available to our customers. To learn more about how your practice can simply and affordably improve ADA compliance, visit our website or call us at 800.338.2372 to talk to one of our medical equipment specialists.
About CME: CME Corp is the nation’s premier source for healthcare equipment, turnkey logistics, and biomedical services, representing 2 million+ products from more than 2,000 manufacturers.
With two corporate offices and 35+ service centers, our mission is to help healthcare facilities nationwide reduce the cost of the equipment they purchase, make their equipment specification, delivery, installation, and maintenance processes more efficient, and help them seamlessly launch, renovate and expand on schedule.
