Equipment and wheelchairs

Community Equipment Service: Medequip

Medequip Assistive Technology Limited provides the Integrated Community Equipment Service for North Yorkshire service users and prescribers of community equipment.

The service commissioned by clinical commissioning groups in York and North Yorkshire, together with North Yorkshire County Council, means that service users may receive equipment such as crutches, walking frames, bath lifts, commodes and back rest cushions if prescribed by a GP or other health and social care professionals.

Medequip can be contacted between 8am-8pm, Monday to Friday and 8am–2pm on a Saturday, with regards to community equipment needs. An out of hours service is also available for requests or emergencies in the evening, at weekends and during bank holidays.

Email: north.yorks@medequip-uk.com

Telephone (in hours): 01423 226 240

Telephone (out of hours): 0208 573 2871

Further details can be found at North Yorkshire Integrated Community Equipment Services.

Medequip's online retail store, Manage at Home, also offers people the opportunity to buy their own equipment to help with independent living.

It offers a range of more than 3,000 items. You can contact customer services on 0800 910 1864 if you wish to discuss your requirements or if you prefer to order over the phone rather than on the website.

Returning equipment

The NHS spends lots of money every year on equipment which is often incorrectly disposed of or not returned at all.

If you did not purchase your equipment and it is on loan to you, it must not be sold or disposed of. When you no longer require the equipment that is on loan, please contact Medequip to arrange free collection by calling 01423 226240 or emailing north.yorks@medequip-uk.com

Alternatively, you may return the equipment to your local drop off point. There are currently two Medequip drop-off points in North Yorkshire:

5B & 5C, Dunslow Court
Eastfield
Scarborough
North Yorkshire
YO11 3XT

Unit 2, Manse Lane
Knaresborough
North Yorkshire
HG5 8LF

And in September 2022, Medequip teamed up with Yorwaste to make 22 of the Household Waste Recycling Centres across the county available as drop-off recycling points for any unwanted community equipment.

Residents can still call or email to request a collection, but having these locations available alongside the existing drop-off locations at some hospitals, will make it more convenient to return equipment when it is no longer needed.

If you purchased your equipment and are looking to dispose of it, please visit the Medequip Equipment Recycling page.

There's more information about drop-off points and amnesty bin locations in this poster and in the image, below.

Compliments and complaints

Out of area provider guidance

Community wheelchair service: Nottingham Rehab Services (NRS)

Nottingham Rehab Services (NRS) delivers the Community Wheelchair Service working closely with Blatchford Clinical Services, who will deliver the clinical assessment element of the service.

NRS can be contacted between 8am - 5pm, Monday to Friday. Help and assistance is also available out of hours (evenings, weekends and bank holidays).

For more information, visit the NRS website.

Telephone 01904 654 052

Telephone (out of hours) 01904 654 052 calls will be redirected to the out of hours service.

Further details can be found at North Yorkshire and York Community Wheelchair Services

The referral form for healthcare professionals is available, here.

COVID-19 (coronavirus): important information

Please note: the postal address for NRS has now changed. The correct address is:-

North Yorkshire & York Wheelchair Services
Unit 13 Stirling Business Park
Bleriot Way
Clifton Moor
York
YO30 4WU

Personal Wheelchair Budgets

Personal Wheelchair Budgets were introduced in North Yorkshire and York in December 2019 and aim to increase choice and control for people who access wheelchair services through:

Providing holistic assessments that take into account people’s wider needs
Considering how wheelchair provision can increase independence and improve people’s health and wellbeing outcomes
Supporting people to identify their own health and wellbeing goals
Increasing the availability of information about the choices available to people locally
Integrating services around individuals by bringing together care and support agencies

How do I know if I'm eligible?

Wheelchair users who are referred and meet the eligibility criteria of the local wheelchair service, plus people who are already registered with the wheelchair service (these people will be eligible for a personal wheelchair budget when they need a new wheelchair) are eligible for an assessment for a Personal Wheelchair Budget.

Exclusions for a Personal Wheelchair Budget are:

Short term loan wheelchairs
People with rapidly deteriorating or changing needs

How are Personal Wheelchair Budgets provided?

Wheelchair users will have three options for the provision of their chair through a Personal Wheelchair Budget:

Notional Personal Wheelchair Budget (standard NHS provision)
This means the provision of the wheelchair that would have routinely been provided by the NHS to meet your identified needs. There may be an opportunity to choose an alternative chair that is within the catalogue of chairs provided, if this better meets your needs at no additional cost e.g. a different colour.
Notional Personal Wheelchair Budget with contribution
This option allows a person or another agency (for example social care, access to work or voluntary or charitable organisation) to contribute their personal budget towards a higher specification NHS wheelchair or add additional features in order to meet wider health and wellbeing needs.
Third Party Personal Wheelchair Budget
This allows a person to use their personal budget as a contribution to buying a wheelchair from an independent retailer outside of the NHS. This is only available if the wheelchair is deemed clinically appropriate following a discussion with a wheelchair therapist.

More information on Personal Wheelchair Budgets can be found at www.england.nhs.uk/personal-health-budgets/personal-wheelchair-budgets/

How can I be assessed for a Personal Wheelchair Budget?

If you currently have a wheelchair provided by North Yorkshire and York Wheelchair Service, you can make a re-referral directly to the Wheelchair Service on:

Phone: 01904 654052

Email: nrl.wcs-york@nhs.net or Cabsl.nyowheelchairs@nhs.net

Website: https://www.nrshealthcare.com/wheelchair/index.php/your-local-service/north-york-wheelchair-service

If you do not currently have a wheelchair and would like to be assessed, a referral will need to be made to the Wheelchair Service, this can be done by either your GP or other professionals who may be involved in your care e.g. Occupational Therapist. If your health and social care professional believes you are eligible for a wheelchair and you will benefit from one, they will refer you to the service.

Self-service online advice tool

The AskSARA self-service online advice tool is very simple to use. Just choose the topic you wish to complete, respond to the questions and then go to your report. The report contains useful advice written by the Disabled Living Foundation's team of occupational therapists as well as details of products that might help you. This information is drawn from an impartial database of equipment that aims to include details of every product on the market.

We hope AskSARA can support you to find solutions to some common day to day problems without the need for you to go through a full adult social care assessment.

Equipment advice and information

The Disabled Living Foundation has created some factsheets which provide general advice on a range of daily living equipment such as features to look for when choosing equipment, and where to get further information. You can download the factsheets from the Disabled Living Foundation website, here.

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