Hospital – Frequently Asked Questions

1
Hospital – Frequently Asked Questions
Updated 4.21.2020
The HealthEquip app
Q. What is HealthEquip™?
A. HealthEquip™ is a smart app available as a web portal as well as a mobile app available on App
Store and Play Store. The app is a matching platform that tracks donations, manages shipping of
donated supplies through UPS, and ensures shipping is paid for by the receiving hospital. It
matches donations with the hospitals in the area based solely on demand – not preferential
treatment. It also ensures that the individual or organization donating PPE will receive a donation
receipt.
Q. Who uses the HealthEquip app?
A. HealthEquip is available to all hospitals in the United States treating COVID-19 patients. It is
also available to any organization or individual that has unadulterated personal protective
equipment (PPE) to donate to hospitals treating COVID-19 patients.
Q. How is the app smart – how does it know what hospital the donated supplies should go
to?
A. The app matches donated supplies with hospitals that have the greatest need and are located
within UPS “one-day delivery” geographic regions.
Q. How much does it cost my hospital?
A. The app is free. The only cost you will incur is the shipping through UPS of donations being sent
to you. By providing your UPS account information into the app it becomes an automated solution
to accelerate receipt of donations.
Q. Is this app real and is it safe?
A. This app is provided by a coalition that includes Microsoft, the American Hospital Association
(AHA), UPS, Kaiser Permanente, Goodwill, Merit Solutions and consulting firm Kearney. The AHA is
sharing this app with hospitals through its 100 Million Mask Challenge
(www.aha.org/100MillionMasks) as a way for the AHA to help facilitate a more efficient means of
distributing critically needed PPE to frontline health care workers. The app is in no way connected
to existing state or federal governmental organizations that are involved in the distribution of PPE.
Q. What are the data security and privacy risks associated with this app?
A. All parties utilizing HealthEquip should evaluate their own organization’s data security and
privacy risks. However, there is no personally identifiable information (PII) on patients in the
application, and no monetary transactions are processed through the application. The application
collects only limited personal information on users of the application for identification and
communication purposes only. Shipping transactions are handled directly between UPS and the
2
receiving hospital. Data collected through the app will be used for matching PPE between donors
and hospitals; it will not be preserved for external research or analysis.
Q. If all health care workers download this app and request PPE is there risk that too much
will go to one hospital while others are shorted?
A. The app determines allocation of donor supplied PPE based on a matching logic between PPE
that becomes available and the needs of each hospital according to needs-criteria gathered from
and updated by each hospital. The app will only send your hospital what it allocates based on your
hospital’s need relative to other hospitals’ reported needs in the same region. To keep it simple,
we recommend you assign one main user to make and monitor demand requests for your
hospital. Or you can limit it to just several users so you collectively know what is being requested
and what is being allocated. We ask that all providers do their best to state their needs as
accurately as they are able understanding the unprecedented demand and limited supply for PPE
generally. Please see the disclaimer below.
Hospital engagement with HealthEquip
Q. What type of PPE is available through this app?
A. The initial focus of this app is donor supplied medical-grade PPE of masks, face masks, gloves
and gowns.
Q. Should I prioritize use of this app with my supply chain manager?
A. That decision is up to each individual hospital. HealthEquip offers a way to automate the
connection between donors of PPE and the hospitals who are in need of it.
Q. What do I need to tell my supply chain team to get them ready to engage in this
exchange?
A. Be prepared to sign into the app on Monday, April 13. You will need to enter your hospital
email address to sign up for the app. You will also need your hospital’s unique Organizational ID,
which is your AHA ID. If you do not know your hospital’s AHA ID, please contact
https://www.health-equiphelp.com/ to receive it. Additionally, the first user at each hospital to sign
onto the app will need the hospital’s UPS account number and password to enter into the app.
This information will be used to pay for donor shipments to your hospital. If your organization
does not have a UPS account number, one can be obtained directly from UPS.
Q. When can a hospital begin placing PPE requests?
PPE requests may be made beginning on Monday, April 13, 2020.
Q. What is my hospitals’ Organizational ID?
A. Your Organizational ID is your hospital’s AHA ID. If you do not know your AHA ID, contact
www.health-equiphelp.com to receive it.
Q. Q. Do I have to reenter our UPS account number every time I make a demand request?
A. No. The same way ride share companies charge your credit card on file for all rides, HealthEquip
charges your UPS account on file for all subsequent demand request shipping charges. If you have
3
questions on UPS’ billing practices, please contact UPS directly.
Q. How does HealthEquip allocate donor PPE to my hospital as compared to other hospitals?
A. You will enter criticality data with each demand request, listed below. HealthEquip uses this
information to determine comparative need and allocates and distributes the PPE according to
need level derived from these four criteria. You are asked to keep these needs-criteria updated as
they change. Please see the disclaimer below.
The data you will be required to enter includes:
▪ Number of COVID-19 patients: this includes the number of COVID-19 patients that are
currently admitted to an inpatient or ICU bed at your hospital.
▪ Number of doctors & nurses: this includes the combined number of doctors and nurses
currently responsible for treating COVID-19 patients that are admitted to an inpatient or
ICU bed at your hospital.
▪ Number of days’ supply on hand for the PPE being requested: this is your hospital’s
estimate of the number of days for which the average balance of PPE will be sufficient.
So, for example, if you are submitting a request for surgical masks, this is the estimate of
days for which your current supply of surgical masks will be sufficient.
▪ Quantity of PPE requested: this is the quantity of PPE you are requesting in any given
category.
Q. Based on the question above is it possible that some hospitals will not receive materials if
not in a hotspot area?
A. The app uses the data given by hospital users in each region and makes allocations to such
users regionally based on the needs represented by such data. Please see the disclaimer below.
Q. How often should I update HealthEquip?
A. That depends on your current situation. If your needs-based criteria are changing daily, you
should update the app daily. The app will use your latest numbers related to number of COVID- 19
patients and number of doctors and nurses to make needs-based allocations of PPE.
Q. Is it easy for hospitals to use HealthEquip?
A. Yes. Hospital users may sign into the smart app on the web portal by going to
https://www.health-equip.com/. Hospitals will then need to register and associate with an existing
hospital location that is pre-loaded into the app database. The hospital user then may place
requests which include quantity requested, quantity of that item remaining on hand,
4
number of COVID-19 patients, and total number of doctors and nurses treating COVID-19
patients. The app performs a matching logic of donated PPE supplies and demand requests within
the region, and allocates the donor PPE supplies according to need. Once the allocation is made,
the UPS label for shipment to the hospital is sent to the donor, and the shipping cost is paid for by
the hospital receiving those PPE supplies.
Q. What if my hospital is not listed in the database?
A. Contact www.health-equiphelp.com and we will verify you, then add you.
Q. How do I effect changes to the hospital address receiving the donor material?
A. The hospital address is pre-populated in the app. For fraud prevention, changes to the hospital
address (the donor material ship to address) can only be made by contacting www.healthequiphelp.com
Q. We plan to use a distribution center as the donor equipment ship-to location, instead of
our actual hospital address. How do we enter our distribution-to addresses into the app?
A. For fraud prevention, updating the distribution center address can only be made by contacting
www.health-equiphelp.com.
Q. My hospital is part of a large system of hospitals. Do we request PPE centrally, or as
individual hospitals, and how do we know that the PPE will go to our individual hospital?
A. The app is structured to operate with individual hospitals, even if they exist within a larger
system. A demand requester organization is an individual hospital location. If a hospital system
has 20 hospitals, we intend to have 20 different hospital locations acting as demand requesters in
the HealthEquip app for that hospital system.
Q. How do demand requests, donor supplied PPE, and material shipments happen within
geographic regions?
A. Donor supplied PPE and demand requests are matched within a geographic region. Currently,
there are fourteen regions defined in the app for the United States. These are designed to have
one-day UPS shipping time, and enough donor and hospital density that results in volume to run
the matching logic based on needs-criteria.
Q. Based on current donors, how long should a hospital expect to wait before being
matched with PPE?
A. We cannot predict how long it will take for hospitals to be matched with PPE. However, we will
do our best to match requests for PPE with PPE donations as soon as possible. Please see the
disclaimer below.
Q. Will donor PPE material be shipped outside of a region, for example across the country
that consists of multiple regions?
A. No, the app keeps donor supply and demand requests within the same region.
5
Q. Will HealthEquip verify the quality and usability of the PPE?
A. No. HealthEquip is a matching solution. HealthEquip will not receive, retain, own or process PPE.
It is simply a platform that matches hospitals in need of PPE with donors who have available PPE.
Please see the disclaimer language below.
Q. Do I need to send the donor a receipt for the donation?
A. HealthEquip will ensure the individual or organization donating the PPE receives a receipt as a
record of the donation. Should the donor require additional information, they will be directed to
reach out to www.health-equiphelp.com.
UPS Shipping & Delivery
Q. What if I want to use a shipper that is not UPS?
A. We have selected UPS as the sole shipping partner. Many health care providers already have a
UPS account and pre-negotiated rates. If your hospital does not have an account, a link to a
simple set-up process is included in the UPS online marketplace.
Q. What if I want to use a different payment method, such as credit card, to pay for UPS
shipping costs?
A. The app currently requires the use of your UPS account number to pay for shipping. If your
hospital does not have an account, a link to a simple set-up process is included in the UPS online
marketplace.
Q. How long will a delivery take?
A. The app is designed to utilize the UPS one-day shipping method.
Q. Is UPS covering the cost of the shipping?
A. The health care provider who orders the goods on the marketplace is responsible for paying for
the shipment. Many health care providers already have an account and pre-negotiated rates with
UPS. If the health care company does not have an account, a link to a simple process is included in
the UPS online marketplace. Since January 2020, UPS and The UPS Foundation have contributed
more than $6 million in donations and in-kind services to assist with COVID-19 humanitarian and
health care support. The company is focusing in-kind services through agencies that support
humanitarian and crisis needs, mainly for not-for-profit organizations.
This program is of tremendous value, but outside of the company’s scope of charitable giving.
Q. If the delivery is late or lost, what do I do?
A. If your hospital does not receive your PPE within three days of the demand request being
fulfilled (which you will see on the app), please contact www.health-equiphelp.com.
Q. Can the materials be ordered or delivered outside the United States?
A. This program is currently only available in the U.S.
Q. Is there a central warehouse where I can go pick up the goods?
6
A. The HealthEquip program is a matching solution. HealthEquip will not receive, retain, own or
process PPE. All inventory remains with the donor until time for shipment. There are no ‘local pickup’ options available or non-marketplace transactions permitted.
Q. Who is responsible if the quantity ordered is not the quantity received?
A. The HealthEquip program will work with the donor and health care provider to determine where
the issue occurred.
The HealthEquip Community
Q. Is it easy for donating individuals or organizations to use HealthEquip?
A. Yes. Users may sign onto the app using their Amazon, LinkedIn, Google, Microsoft or Facebook
passwords. [Apple ID will be enabled soon]. Those making donations will enter their contact
information, their items to donate which must meet minimum size, manufacturer date and
manufacturer criteria, and then receive an e-mail with one or more UPS labels. They may schedule
a UPS pick up within the app, or drop the parcels off at a UPS location.
Q. What is the anticipated volume that will run through HealthEquip?
A. At this time we can’t forecast volume but we know that almost every health care facility in the
United States, and most locations globally, are struggling with having the supplies on hand when
needed. We have identified 5,400 acute care hospitals in the United States likely to be treating
COVID-19 patients, and expect that many will participate. Donors will begin to sign up starting on
Friday, April 10, and we cannot forecast the volume of PPE that will be available or how quickly it
will be available for your hospital.
Q: Anything else I need to know?
A: Yes — this legal disclaimer:
The HealthEquip application (HealthEquip) is intended to facilitate an efficient means by which
persons or entities who have personal protective equipment and other supplies (collectively,
Equipment) can donate them to hospitals or other health care providers who need such Equipment.
The American Hospital Association (AHA), Microsoft, Merit Solutions, Kaiser Permanente, Kearney,
UPS, and each of their affiliates (each, a Party, and collectively, the Parties), do not evaluate or
inspect the Equipment or evaluate the donors of the Equipment in advance. Any hospital or other
provider receiving Equipment via HealthEquip is solely responsible for evaluating any Equipment
such provider may receive, and in particular, is responsible for confirming the Equipment meets any
applicable requirements and specifications, and is not defective, adulterated, or otherwise unsuitable
for the intended use. Neither the AHA nor any other Party makes any representations or warranties
regarding the functionality or performance of HealthEquip, or that use of HealthEquip will result in
delivery of the Equipment requested. The recipient of any
Equipment acknowledges and agrees that any Equipment it receives is accepted on an “as is” basis,
with no representations or warranties of any kind, express or implied, including without limitation
any representation or warranty regarding quality, compliance with any applicable specifications,
non-infringement, merchantability or fitness for a particular purpose. Any use of Equipment received
through use of HealthEquip is at the recipient’s own risk. Neither the AHA nor any of
7
the other Parties will be liable for any damages of any kind arising from (i) the use of, or reliance on,
any Equipment received by any person or entity via HealthEquip; (ii) any allocation or non-allocation
of Equipment via HealthEquip; or (iii) any delay in delivery or failure to deliver Equipment for any
reason.
For more information
To view tutorials or read the instructions on using HealthEquip please go to www.healthequiphelp.com