Flathead Industries has been serving the needs of disabled adults since 1973, offering everything from living arrangements to employment to rehabilitation. Now you can add medical equipment to its extensive list of services.
Partnering with Specialized Medical Inc., Flathead Industries has launched a line of medical equipment that caters to a wide variety of needs. There are wheelchairs specifically designed for certain conditions or age groups; easy-to-use overhead ceiling lifts; electric scooters; speech and hearing devices; automobile lifts and other products that are instrumental to the daily lives of the disabled.
“We recognized that our community needs this,” said Tom Murphy, a vocational counselor at Flathead Industries.
Flathead Industries held two open houses last week to give both the public and potential purchasers the chance to see the new equipment. Dick Ramos, community relations coordinator, said he extended invitations to a number of representatives from industries that could use the products, such as hospital and assisted living officials.
Representatives from Specialized Medical Inc. and manufacturers were on hand to give demonstrations and answer questions. Specialized Medical is a Helena-based distributor of medical supplies and equipment.
“We’re excited about this,” Ramos said.
The partnership has multiple benefits, Murphy said. By offering the equipment and keeping it in stock for people to see, Flathead Industries is not only better able to serve its large network of existing clients – both physically and developmentally disabled – but also has the opportunity to reach more people in the community. This includes disabled veterans, elderly, people recovering from injuries and others.
Murphy said people generally prefer to try out a product before they purchase it, as opposed to ordering it online. They can make sure it fits them.
“Sometimes they need to see the conceptualization of the physical nature,” Murphy said. “They can actually see the demonstration and play with (the products.)”
Furthermore, the nonprofit stands to make some money to help shoulder the load of day-to-day operating costs. Murphy said he hopes down the road the equipment can bring in somewhere in the neighborhood of a few thousand dollars to $10,000 a month.
Flathead Industries affiliates with groups such as the Department of Health and Human Services, Veterans Affairs and the Montana State Fund. Through its program called Career Connections, Flathead Industries assesses potential job placements for disabled clients and helps them find appropriate positions – some in-house at its production facility and many at businesses around the community. It also runs a number of thrift stores where it employs clients.
Murphy wants the disabled people who come to Flathead Industries to think in terms of opportunities, not limitations. The new medical equipment, he said, is yet another opportunity.
“What we look at is not your limits, it’s ‘Let’s break that glass ceiling,’” Murphy said. “There are no limits.”