If you are on the fence on whether purchasing used medical equipment is the right decision for your practice, you should probably consider the pros and cons. Let me share a few pros and cons with you regarding used medical and refurbished medical equipment.

The Pros:

The biggest benefit is the financial savings you will receive. Most times, you can save as much as 50% or sometimes higher depending on the condition of the equipment. Often times you can search online to find brokers willing to barter, or even let you buy the equipment in bulk if you have a large practice.

If you find a good broker or used medical equipment dealer, you should be able to find some great advice regarding the equipment itself and the quality. If you don’t find the equipment you are looking for you will often find these dealers are very helpful in pointing you to online and offline resources for the equipment you are looking for. The network is key in finding the deals!

The Cons:

The one drawback to purchasing used or refurbished medical equipment is that you may not know the broker. You need to understand the process, and verify whether to devices have been inspected by a certified professional and are in working condition. It also helps to have the vendor provide references from other happy customers.

If you are in the market, make sure you ask about the warranties, how many hours the devices have been in use, and the experience of the staff certifying the equipment.

You may find that you have to shop around a bit, but it is worth the time before you put a large investment forth in new medical equipment for your practice.

Good luck!

Besides a good attitude and a good amount of patience, there are many things that a fencer requires in order to be able to fence. Getting started all you will need are the fencing jacket, mask, glove and fencing equipment or a practice weapon, which is less involved than the obvious requirements of competition preparation. The main fencing swords used are the foil, the sabre, and the epee.

Many clubs will lend you fencing gear when you are just starting and doing a beginner course. Once you complete the course, and are hooked to it, you will be encouraged to buy your own set of gear. There are two different options for a beginner.

The first option is to buy the equipment piece-wise, until you have a full set. The other option is to purchase a starter kit, these kits contain all the basic elements of fencing requirements already assemble and sold as a unit. You have a list of required items, but what do you do with it? Prior to purchasing or using your own equipment it is important to have a solid basic understanding of both capability and purpose of each item.

The fencing jacket is made with the intent of protecting the fencer. It is important to select a jacket which is both well made and provides adequate protective coverage. There is no standard minimum constraint in the US, there is a particular standard of protection in Europe, though. For tournaments which are international in scope, such as Olympic fencing, there are greater requirements.

When starting out, the basic uniforms are more than enough. The main choices you’ll require to make are between cotton or synthetic materials. Cotton is likely to be cheaper, but is heavier and hotter whilst the synthetic materials are lighter weight but a little more expensive.

The mask is used for safety so make sure you choose a mask that is equipped with enough padding, fits well and doesn’t bear down on the top of your head or your chin. Although you can buy non-electric gloves, it really is worthwhile to get a glove equipped with a cuff that you can wear for electric fencing.

This cuff allows you to easily connect the body cord to an electric weapon from under the sleeve. These weapons come in all sizes, small to large, or in separate glove sizes. Picking up gloves that are individually sized will help you get a better fit, but they will also cost you more. The foil is made for thrusting, with a thin blade, and rounded (also known as foiled) tip. Foil blades are greatly flexible, able to bend upon contact with an opponent, thus preventing injuries.