Examination instruments

Blood pressure — manual or automatic

The manual cuffs from AB Henry Eriksson are read using a stethoscope and inflation bulb, with a Boso manometer. They come in two cuff sizes, 12 x 35 cm and 15 x 43 cm, and the smaller one also in a version where the manometer is integrated into the cuff instead of hanging loose — practical when you measure standing at an examination couch or in an ambulance.

The fully automatic monitors from Beurer, BC28 and BC54, do the whole measurement themselves instead. The BC54 is worn on the wrist. Automatic measurement is quick when many people need checking in a row; manual measurement is still what gives you control over the result, because you hear the sounds yourself and can re-measure immediately if something seems implausible. Many services therefore have both.

Oxygen saturation, pulse and temperature

• Pulse oximeter Beurer PO 30 — oxygen saturation and pulse on a colour display, the simpler model for routine checks.
• Pulse oximeter Beurer PO 40 and PO 45 — also show the perfusion index, i.e. how strong the pulse signal is in the finger. That is the figure that determines whether a low reading should be taken seriously or is just due to a cold hand.
• Beurer Clinical FT 09/1 — digital clinical thermometer, the simple workhorse for the bag and the examination room.
• Braun ThermoScan 7 IRT6520 — ear thermometer for quick measurement. The lens filters are changed between patients for hygiene reasons and are available as a separate 20-pack in this category.
• Otoscope Luxamed LuxaScope Auris, LED 2.5 V — for inspecting the ear canal and eardrum.

For the clinic, training room and bag

If an examination room is to be equipped from scratch, this is roughly the list: a manual blood pressure monitor with the right cuff size, an automatic one for quick checks, a pulse oximeter, a thermometer with consumables and an otoscope. For an emergency bag or a training set, most people instead choose what can be moved around — a manual cuff with integrated manometer, a pulse oximeter and a digital clinical thermometer.

Think about consumables straight away. The ear thermometer is the only instrument here that needs something new for every measurement, and a thermometer without lens filters in the drawer is a thermometer that does not get used.

The rest of the examination

The same assessment calls for penlights to illuminate pupils, mouth and throat, and reflex hammers in three classic models. The stethoscope is needed both for auscultation and for manual blood pressure measurement — the entire Littmann range with spare parts and cases has its own category. If you also need to take care of a wound, there are surgical instruments with forceps, scissors and needle holders, and what you carry during a shift — watch, cap, badge holder — is under personal equipment.