Leaving Rehab? Equipment Sourced From Your Therapist's Specification
Leaving rehab? You already know what you need
After weeks or months at GF Strong, Holy Family or Queen’s Park, the equipment question is not what to buy — your therapy team has usually specified it precisely. The problem is sourcing it, funding it, and having it in place on the day you leave.
- We work from OT specifications
- Free quotes for funding
- Delivery & setup
- Rent or buy
Rehab discharge is not like hospital discharge
A hospital discharge is fast and vague — two days’ notice and a handwritten list. A rehab discharge is the opposite. You have known the date for weeks, an occupational therapist has assessed the person properly, and there is often a written specification naming seat widths, cushion types and transfer methods.
That changes what is useful from a supplier. You do not need someone to guess what you might want. You need someone who can read a specification, source exactly what is on it, quote it in the format a funding application requires, and have it installed and set up for the day you come home.
It also means the stakes are higher. This equipment is often permanent rather than temporary, so a wrong seat width or an unsuitable cushion is something the person lives with for years rather than weeks.
This is the single biggest advantage a rehab discharge has over a hospital one, and it is regularly wasted. Ministry funding must be approved before purchase and can take weeks — but you already have the therapist assessment, which is the usual bottleneck. Get the quote and submit early, and the equipment can be funded and waiting rather than bought in a rush afterwards. Our funding guide sets out the order to do things in.
What usually comes up
Rehab discharges cluster around two situations.
Spinal cord injury & complex neurological
Often from GF Strong. Equipment tends to be permanent, individually specified, and expensive.
- Wheelchair specified to exact seat width and depth
- Pressure-relief cushion and mattress, not optional extras
- Patient lift, transfer board or slide sheets
- Hospital bed with full height adjustment for transfers
- Bathroom equipment sized to the actual bathroom
Stroke & slower recovery
Often from Holy Family or Queen’s Park. Needs change over months, which changes the rent-or-buy answer.
- A walking aid that will likely be replaced as ability improves
- Wheelchair for distance, walking aid for indoors
- Bathroom safety, usually the first priority at home
- Bed downstairs if stairs are not yet manageable
- Renting suits anything therapy may make unnecessary
How we work with a therapist specification
Send us the spec
Photograph it and send it through our contact form, or read it over the phone. You do not need to interpret it for us.
We quote it exactly
Itemised with model numbers and the detail funding applications ask for. Free, whether or not you buy from us.
You submit and wait
Do this while still in rehab if you can. Approval before purchase is a requirement, not a preference.
We deliver and set up
To the discharge date, in the room, adjusted to the person, with whoever is providing care shown how it works.
Rather than substituting quietly. A wheelchair cushion or seat width that differs from what an OT specified is not a minor variation — it can undo months of work on posture and skin integrity. If we cannot source the exact item we will tell you and suggest you check the alternative with the therapist before deciding.
Common questions
Can you work directly from an occupational therapist’s specification?
Yes. Send it through and we will quote against it line by line. If anything is ambiguous we will flag it rather than guessing, and if you would like us to speak to the therapist directly we are happy to, with your permission.
Can you deliver to the rehab facility instead of home?
Usually the equipment goes to the home so it is set up and waiting. If the therapy team wants to check a fit before discharge, that is normally arranged through the facility rather than with us directly — ask your OT how they prefer to handle it.
Should we rent or buy after rehab?
It depends on how settled the need is. After a spinal cord injury the equipment is usually permanent, and buying the correctly specified item is right. After a stroke, ability often changes considerably over the first year, so renting the things therapy may make unnecessary can save a great deal.
Will funding cover a specific model, or just a basic one?
Ministry funding applies a least expensive appropriate equipment standard, meaning it funds what meets the medical need rather than a preferred model. This is exactly where a detailed therapist assessment matters — if a specific feature is medically justified, the assessment saying so is what turns a preference into a requirement. See our funding guide.
Can you help set up the home before discharge?
Yes. We deliver and install rather than leaving boxes at the door, and for a planned discharge we can work to the date so everything is in place before the person arrives. Tell us the date as early as you have it.
Are you connected to GF Strong or any health authority?
No. Must Medical is an independent retailer. We are not affiliated with GF Strong Rehabilitation Centre, Holy Family Hospital, Queen’s Park Care Centre, Vancouver Coastal Health, Providence Health Care or Fraser Health, and you do not need a referral to buy or rent from us.
Must Medical Equipment is an independent retailer of home medical equipment. We are not affiliated with, endorsed by or connected to any rehabilitation facility or health authority. Facility names are used only to describe the situations we serve. Nothing here is medical advice — follow the guidance of your therapy team.
Send us the specification
We will quote it exactly, in the format your funding application needs, free and with no obligation.
- Showroom: 12987 80 Ave, Surrey, BC
- Open 24 hours, 7 days a week
- info@mustmedical.ca