New hospital program offers HELP to those ?in need
Published 1:05 pm Thursday, January 22, 2015
Most people need medical equipment such as crutches, a wheelchair or a hospital bed at some point. Yet not everyone can afford these devices and health insurance either does not cover them or charges co-pays.
To help people access affordable medical equipment, Snoqualmie Valley Hospital collaborated with Mount Si Senior Center, Sno-Valley Senior Center and Bridge Disability Ministries to develop the Home Equipment Loan Program, or HELP.
“At Snoqualmie Valley Hospital, we feel a responsibility to educate people so they can make an informed decision about how to use their insurance benefits,” said Susan Lord, occupational therapy assistant for the hospital. “At the HELP Center, people can borrow the equipment they need without having to use a benefit they may need for more expensive equipment later.”
The HELP Center opened Dec. 19, in an outbuilding in the parking lot of Snoqualmie Hospital Rehabilitation Clinic in downtown Snoqualmie.
Mount Si Senior Center has served as a drop-off site for used equipment for several years and made the equipment available to community members.
Ann Landry, Executive Director for Mount Si Senior Center, contacted Snoqualmie Valley Hospital to collaborate on a donation center program.
“This is such an important service for our community. If our residents, especially seniors, don’t have access to walkers, wheelchairs and other mobility devices, their ability to leave the house is limited, creating feelings of loneliness and isolation,” Landry said.
While insurance, Medicare and Medicaid cover most mobility equipment, bathroom equipment such as tub benches and commodes, is not covered by insurance
Lord found Bridge Disability Ministries while researching places that could loan equipment to people. Bridge sanitizes, refurbishes and loans previously owned medical equipment, helping around 200 people per month at their Bellevue location. All equipment is donated.
“We can provide a variety of equipment such as canes, walkers, power wheelchairs and even hospital beds,” said Gerry Barney, Bridge manager. “The loan philosophy makes sense because why use something just a few times and then let it sit in a garage or get thrown away?”
While there is no charge for equipment, monetary donations are accepted and will be used to fund repair and sanitization of the equipment and to purchase additional equipment.
To donate equipment, drop it off at Mount Si Senior Center, 411 Main Ave. South in North Bend or at Sno-Valley Senior Center, 4610 Stephens Ave. in Carnation.
The HELP Center is open from 2:30 to 6:30 p.m. the first and third Friday of each month at 38565 S.E. River St., Snoqualmie.
For more information, call Lord at (425) 831-2300 ext. 165, send e-mail to susanl@snoqualmiehospital.org, or visit www.snoqualmiehospital.org.
