For the longest time, the most common need for medical devices in the home was to administer medication. When patients are no longer in the hospital, yet need their medication, medical devices like IVs and syringe pumps are brought to the home. Even items like medication measuring cups for liquid medications or splitting tools for pills are considered medical devices used in the home. Now, all sorts of medical devices are brought into the home, and they are becoming increasingly more complicated and advanced. You can even find things like testing kits and bed lifts in patient's homes.

From Hospitals to Homes
The medical industry has been under a serious amount of stress. They barely have enough room or staff to care for all of their patients in house. Therefore, there has been a push for many patients to continue their care at home in an outpatient program. At the same time, the need for complex care and medical devices has increased dramatically, as well as the advancement of the technology in the devices themselves. This means that there are much more complex medical devices going into homes than ever before.

Medical Supplies in the Home
There is a wide range of medical devices used from home. As stated above, only small, simple devices like medicine cups and pill splitting devices were used at home. Now, patients have fully operational hospital-grade beds in their home. Here are some of the most common types of medical devices that can be found in homes today. 

Voiding Equipment
This type of device is used for someone who cannot empty their bowels on their own. Catheters are of the most used type of voiding device used for these patients. Catheter samples for free can be found at many hospitals and medical supplier locations for those who are aware of their needs. Urinary catheters are needed for patients with urinary incontinence. This problem increases as patients get older. In fact, while only 14% of individuals aged 65-69 needed catheters, up to 45% of people need them when they reach 85 or older.

Administration and Monitoring Equipment
These devices typically go hand in hand. If someone needs medication administration, especially via IV, they probably need to be monitored as well. These monitors are typically held to the same grade as the ones found in hospitals.