As a paramedic, you have a lot of responsibility. You administer life-saving medications, restart damaged hearts, deliver squirming newborns, and manage mass casualty situations. And it’s not like you get to do all of this in the controlled setting of an emergency room. No, you are expected to function at three a.m. in the midst of a raging blizzard among the tangled wreckage of a ten-car pileup. It’s not an easy job.

You have been given the “go-ahead” to purchase new portable medical suction for the hospital within an  allocated budget. Since you want to make a wise and informed decision, let’s take a look at some of the most important factors to consider before buying new suction machines.

Your current portable suction devices aren’t performing as they should.  You notice the battery life is short, the suction is weak, and they are seemingly unreliable. Because you are concerned about patient safety, you suggest to your manager that the hospital should purchase some new devices. What you soon learn, however, is that medical equipment at the hospital isn’t just purchased because an employee thinks it is needed.  Instead, there needs to be planning, budgeting, and approval for all new equipment.

In today’s changing healthcare environment, hospital spending is being closely monitored. With so much attention on the bottom line, allocating funds for new equipment is not something that is taken lightly. Often a committee of members from various disciplines is used to make purchasing decisions.

Pediatric emergencies are some of the most challenging calls to which paramedics respond. And when the emergency involves the respiratory system - whether medical, traumatic, or obstructive - literally every second counts. The first step in pediatric airway management is securing a clear passageway. Therefore, medical suction is a crucial link in the treatment chain. But clearing a child’s airway is not the same as clearing that of an adult. Smaller jaws, larger tongues, shorter necks, and more anterior tracheas dictate extra care when suctioning the pediatric airway and the equipment you choose makes a difference.