When we brought Isaac home we were inundated not only with all the trainings we needed to have about the different equipment but also with boxes and boxes of supplies. One year later, I know his supplies like the back of my hand. At the beginning when the DME company does your training at the hospital they will tell you that you are only getting a certain number of each item. YOU need to tell them at the beginning that you need the number of items below and that your doctors office will write an order for it. Of course, make sure you verify from the doctor’s office first that you can get such an order! Below are the list of supplies I get every month. I hope it helps you keep track.

I would have a blue or black permanent marker to date the heater, water bags, filters, suction canisters. This is important so that you can tell at a glance if a certain part needs to be changed. I also try to make changes at specific days of the week. We change circuits every Thursday and my nurse changes the g-tube extension and other things on with Monday or Wednesday. I would time it on a day when you have a permanent nurse so you have some assistance in making the changes.

LTV1150 Ventilator

Trache and step down trache- DME will only give 1 step-down trache

4 circuits- to be changed once a week

2 heaters-some DME’s provide 4; changed every 2 weeks

2 vent filters-when you change the heater you change the filter

4 vent adaptors-this ensures that the circuit is tightly attached to the vent; changed every week but can be changed every 2 weeks

2 oxygen tubings; change as needed

1 black small sponge filter- check to see if its dusty and wash and dry and alternate with another one; we get this quarterly but as far as I’m concerned it can be washed and used until it cannot be used anymore

1 beige small sponge filter-same as the black sponge filter

30 in-line suction catheters (make sure you ask for one per day); can be changed every 2 days or every other day

30 trache ties

4 omniflex tubing- changed at every circuit change

2 boxes of gauze- I prefer Excillon gauze for my trache site

30 trache care kits; the most important things here are the qtips but I have used regular qtips

8 bags of sterile water for the heater; change bags when the water runs out soon

hme- for travel

lubricant for trache and gtube insertion- a single tube can last for more than a year

G-TUBE Supplies

30 feeding bags- each bag is used for 24 hrs

Formula for a month

2 boxes of applicators; I use it for gtube cleaning

4 G-tube extensions- change once a week

4 60cc. syringes for venting

neo-sucker

1 spare/back-up G-tube button (1 per 6 months)

4  5ml. and 4 20ml syringes (I was told by my DME that Medicaid will approve 4 of each kind of syringes)- I throw away syringes when the lines fade or they get yucky

Stationary Suction Machine

4 suction tubing- I always put a new one in the portable suction machine; when we go out and come back we take it out then wash it and place it in the stationary suction and throw the one there away

4 suction canisters- same as I do above with the suction tubing

2 sets of tubings for filter for suction machine-changed every 3 months

2 suction filters- changed every 3 months

Pulse Oximeter Supplies

8 Pulse oximeter probes- change as needed

20 pulse oximeter tape

Nebulizer Supplies

2 sets of nebulizer kits

spacers- if administering  inhaler through ventilator

Nebulizer

100 pcs or 1 box of 5ml. saline bullets- if you nebulize a lot for treatments make this 2 boxes

Ambu-Bag (only receive 1 total)

“E” oxygen tanks- place 1 under the vent and have another one in the corner of the room as back-up

 

I will update this when I have looked through my closet. There might be some that I have missed but most of the important stuff is here. Of course, as far as equipment goes you need to have:

Stationary suction machine

Portable suction machine-always plugged and charging; change the suction canister and tubing when you come home from doctors appointments

pulse oximeter

back up big battery

sprint pack under the vent- disconnect from vent and main cable when fully charged; the sprint pack will only give you 3 hours of reliable power. I recommend you plug in when at the doctors office

oxygen concentrator- if coming home on oxygen

2-3 surge protectors (personal purchase)- one surge protector for the main equipment like the heater, stationary suction, pulse oximeter and feeding pump; second one for the nursing agency’s computer, big battery, and personal use of nurses; third is for any other technology in the room like iPad or television.