If you or a loved one need a hospital bed for home use, is it in your best interest to rent or buy? There’s no one answer to that question, but here are a few points that you’ll want to consider when deciding if you should rent or buy a hospital bed.
What You Get When You Rent a Bed
First, it’s important to understand just what you’ll receive when you rent a hospital bed. You will receive a basic Medicare hospital bed. These beds are quite basic, and are limited in what they do. They won’t have the advanced positioning, features, or comfort devices that upper-level hospital beds do.
Your Options When You Purchase a Bed
In contrast, when you purchase a hospital bed, you will have unlimited options. You can choose from beds that:
- Can be positioned very low or very high for improved safety (Hi-Low is a very important feature to help prevent falls)
- May offer Trendelenburg and reverse Trendelenburg positions
- Have turn and standing assists
- Look like they belong in your home, rather than in a hospital (choose from nicer headboards and footboards, and avoid that “hospital look”)
- Take up little room
- Have a width of 35” or less, or offer adjustable widths
- Hug the wall (wall hugger beds) to take up less space in your room
- Offer attendant control
- And more
Beds offering the above features are not available as rentals, so purchasing a bed gives you much more control over what type of bed you ultimately want in your home. Additionally, when you buy a bed you are guaranteed to receive a new bed; when you rent, it is likely that the bed you receive will be used.
Expected Timeframe for the Bed’s Use
The length of time that you expect to use the hospital bed will affect your decision of whether to rent or buy a bed. If you anticipate only needing a bed for short-term use, then it may make more financial sense to rent a bed. However, be sure to consider the fact that if you rent a semi-electric or full electric bed for about 3 to 4 months, your rental fees will be close to the cost of purchasing a new bed.
Options for Upgrades
If you decide that renting a hospital bed is right for you, there are ways to improve the bed’s comfort. Rental hospital beds come with a basic foam mattress, but simply upgrading the mattress can add comfort and improve your experience in using the bed. Consider purchasing your own mattress for the rental bed, but make sure that you ask for the mattress purchase before the bed is delivered.
Getting Your Hospital Bed
Whether you’ve already decided to rent or buy a bed or are still debating your options, please give Great Mats a call. Our bed experts would be happy to help you find the bed and option that is just right for your needs.