If I had a nickle for every time a portable oxygen concentrator user had incorrectly selected a setting on their portable oxygen concentrator, …well, I would have a lot of nickles.

Often times you cannot blame the patient, the patient you see was taking direction from the doctor.  And while the doctor has most likely done a brilliant job on keeping current on new trends for his patients on oxygen therapy, keeping current on portable oxygen concentrators and new advances in oxygen delivery  systems is not the doctor’s primary focus.

So, who then do we look to for information on portable oxygen concentrator, and how to correctly use them.  The majority of Home Medical Equipment providers, while capable of selling a portable oxygen concentrator, fall drastically short of any useful knowledge of the portable oxygen concentrator’s best practices and best utilization.

What about those internet sites that popped up in the last 5 years, certainly they would now how to use the equipment they sell, or try to sell with CHEAP portable oxygen concentrator banners?  No, sorry.  Most of those companies are out trying to make a buck, by selling products they do not now how to properly use, and do not even stock.  Bubba sitting in a garage selling a product for a few dollars over cost, that he does not know how to service, that he never touches because some manufacturer let’s him ship directly from a warehouse does not know how the product works.

We have specialized in portable oxygen and portable oxygen concentrators since 2002. We started in medical equipment in 1990.  We have serviced nearly 10,000 patients, and patient education is a primary focus.

We find the best person to educate about portable oxygen concentrator is the end user.  True, we speak at Pulmonary Rehab Groups, Better Breather Groups, Pulmonary Groups, Independent Physician Associations, Skilled Nursing Facilities and other clinical groups, and while it is great to educate the doctors about the true performance of portable oxygen concentrators, we know the most lasting education we do is with customers and their families.

One of the first things to know about portable oxygen concentrators is they are all NOT created equal, and…that is OK.  Because five different portable oxygen concentrators can give you five different amounts of oxygen on the same setting is not a bad thing, …as long as you know that to be true.

One of the most common mistakes made with selecting a setting for a portable oxygen concentrator is simply taking the setting from the stationary oxygen concentrator and moving that directly over to your portable oxygen concentrator.  So, my stationary oxygen concentrator is set on 2, so my portable oxygen concentrator should be set on 2 as well right?  Well, no, probably not. Not if five different portable oxygen concentrators gave you five different doses of oxygen on a setting of 2.

• The Respironics Evergo portable oxygen concentrator gives 23 cc of oxygen on a setting of 2.
• The SeQual Eclipse 3 portable oxygen concentrator gives 32 cc of oxygen on a setting of 2.
• The Inova Labs LifeChoice portable oxygen concentrator gives 24 cc of oxygen on a setting of 2.
• The Airsep Freestyle portable oxygen concentrator gives 19 cc of oxygen on a setting of 2.
• The Invacare Solo2 portable oxygen concentrator gives 36 cc of oxygen on a setting of 2.

So, I have listed just five portable oxygen concentrators, and there are a few more that I would use and trust,..one or two I would not let my dog use.  But as for the five portable oxygen concentrators I mentioned, you see a great difference in the dose of oxygen you are receiving.  Clearly 2 does not equal  2.

Now, here is the real fun part, what if I told you that each of the five portable oxygen concentrators I mentioned have proprietary delivery systems that release the bolus (dose of oxygen in a small short burst), and depending on the patient’s respiratory idiosyncrasies, one portable oxygen concentrator may perform better than another portable oxygen concentrator.

But that is a discussion for another time.

Please See Part 2 of Choosing the Correct setting for your Portable Oxygen Concentrator for more insight on getting the most out of your Choosing the Correct setting for your Portable Oxygen Concentrator.