How to choose a medical equipment supplier?

How well and fully a polyclinic, hospital, diagnostic centre or dental office is equipped with the necessary medical equipment depends on the suppliers. Therefore, any medical institution should approach the choice of medical equipment suppliers very carefully and responsibly. The effectiveness of diagnosis and treatment of people depends on the quality of devices and materials, as well as their timely maintenance.

The most important factor in providing a healthcare facility with the best equipment is the right choice of supplier.

In this post, we will analyse what kind of suppliers or representative offices are, and what functions they perform.

So, equipment suppliers can be classified into the following groups:

1. Producers. If the manufacturers are located in Ukraine, they can either distribute their products independently or through a network of dealers who provide service and advertising of products. Exclusive distributors or representative offices are responsible for providing repair and information activities of foreign manufacturers. All of the above organisations belong to the official market.

   Unofficial:

   • "Grey" dealers are companies that import equipment to Ukraine bypassing official supply routes. Theoretically, they provide information support and equipment maintenance. In this case, the equipment is subject to customs inspection, and all documents may be genuine. NOTA BENE! Unofficial dealers cannot guarantee the quality and reliability of the equipment, do not pass certification of medical equipment in accordance with technical regulations, and therefore cannot supply equipment on legal terms. It should also be noted that since they do not have official permission from the manufacturer to distribute their goods, they are not able to perform warranty and post-warranty work on the equipment.