Good Neighbor Podcast Northport
Bringing Together Local Businesses and Neighbors of Tuscaloosa and Northport!
Good Neighbor Podcast Northport
Jett Medical: Navigating the Healing Path with Joe Barger's Touch of Care
Join Joe Barger, the founder of Jett Medical, on a journey of enlightenment as he shares his experiences in the durable medical equipment industry. Joe's insights range from patient care stories to dealing with insurance carriers and provide a unique perspective on equipping individuals with the tools for recovery. Throughout the discussion, we learn about Jett Medical's evolution, the challenges of prescription-based medical supplies, and the importance of patient education. Joe's specialized fittings expertise and dedication to customer satisfaction are the hallmarks of Jett Medical's service, setting it apart from impersonal big box stores.
The conversation goes beyond business mechanics to advocacy, personalized care, and the impact of leadership on future generations. Joe's commitment to his business and the community as a mayor is truly inspiring. This episode showcases the entrepreneurial spirit, the intricacies of healthcare, and the power of community involvement. Tune in for an immersive experience that highlights the intersection of business acumen and heartfelt dedication to making a difference. #GNPBirmingham #JettMedical #JetMedCo #durablemedicalequipment #dme #healthcare #medicalequipment #physicaltherapy #medicalsupply #nursepractitioner #nursinghome #rehabilitation #outsourcing
This is the Good Neighbor Podcast, the place where local businesses and neighbors come together. Here's your host, patricia Blondheim. Welcome to the Good Neighbor Podcast. I'm your host, patricia Blondheim, and today we have good neighbor Joe Barger, and Joe is the owner of Jet Medical, which is located in Morgan Village in Bessemer. Joe, how are you this morning?
Speaker 2:Doing great. How are you doing?
Speaker 1:I'm doing great. Thank you, tell us all about Jet Medical.
Speaker 2:Well, jet Medical is a durable medical equipment company that has been in business since 2003. We have a niche market that started out as serving the workman's comp industry in Alabama but we have grown in the last eight years to reach out to the commercial, the group health side of insurances, sort of your Blue Cross, blue Shields, medicare, medicaid and other insurance carriers, commercial insurance carriers.
Speaker 1:So what does that mean to me as an uninitiated possible consumer of medical equipment?
Speaker 2:Well, what that means for you and other consumers is we have what we often refer to as hospital discharge equipment.
Speaker 2:If you're in the hospital and you're going home and they say you need a wheelchair, you need a rolling walker, a cane, or if you go to the doctor and you have a wound and they're like here's some wound care, that you need Different types of dressings, ointments, wound cleansers, we have those and we keep those in stock. We do bracing for athletes or people who just have injuries, a slip and fall, for a knee, lower back arm, elbow hand, wrist cervical, elbow hand, wrist cervical. We are sort of that medical provider, medical equipment provider that can just about find anything. However, we do not serve the industry of oxygen, so that is the one thing that we have sort of stayed away from. That's a big task task, so I have not jumped off into that yet. But um, we serve a lot of um of your general medical needs at home, whether it be urological, ostomy, um incontinence issues, mobility issues, shower, daily living needs. That that is what we serve our community with.
Speaker 1:Well, is my doctor going to tell me where to go? Is he going to be the person? He or she going to be the person who tells me?
Speaker 2:where I can go get this equipment.
Speaker 2:Yes, the doctor does write prescriptions and that's generally where that need arises. So if you're at the doctor's office or you're in the hospital and you're going home and he said, hey, here's the list of things you need, whether it's to take care of wounds, who are in the aged population, or they may have a disability that they can't get up as well out of the chair as they once did, or they can't walk long distances, but they still wanna go to the park and see their grandchildren play softball, soccer, baseball, football, or had the ability to go to Walmart or go out shopping and have that mobility to spend time with the family and meet their daily needs.
Speaker 1:So wouldn't I just go to the local big box drugstore for this?
Speaker 2:Well, sometimes you can. However, we add a little bit more value than your big box stores. We like to make sure that the patient has what they need, that you understand the equipment. However, we add a little bit more value than your big box stores. We like to make sure that the patient has what they need, they understand the equipment they're receiving and that if they have an issue, they have someone that they can call and we'll make it right. We are open 9 to 3.30 daily in our location in Morgan Village. However, my phone is on 24-7. I don't get a lot of calls at midnight, but anyway, we want to make sure the patient is served from beginning to end and they have no questions. Their equipment's working right and they're very satisfied.
Speaker 1:Does insurance cover this? Sometimes it does yes.
Speaker 2:Sometimes the insurance does cover it. We all we have our insurance. People here in the office check benefits. You know there's a myth out there that Medicare and Blue Cross, blue Shield, pays for everything, because they don't. Your DME policy, which is durable medical equipment policy, does not cover like major medical. So we'll go in, we'll check your benefits. We explain OK, here's your copay, here's your deductible. This is what this means. So we make sure that the patient has a good understanding of their responsibility before we just sling any equipment and provide it to them so they're not stuck with a big bill. There's nothing worse than when you think you are getting better and you're about to be 100% recovered, as to get a big bill in the mail, and that sometimes can be just as debilitating.
Speaker 1:But this is key to your compliance and your post, imagining that it's surgical, which it isn't always, but post-surgical or post-medical self-care, and I think it's a benefit to have people there who can find the best equipment for you, not just the equipment that is available to you on that little hook when you go into the large big box drugstore.
Speaker 2:Yes, I think there's a large added value when you can talk to the people who use and work with the equipment daily, such as cold compression therapy. You said post-surgery. You know, when people are having their rotator cuff or a knee replacement, a simple scope on their knee um, the doctor will pass along a cold compression therapy unit or a cold unit or some type of brace, um a flexion brace, an extension brace. So we are, we are versed in those. I have orthotists that will come to your home or to wherever you decide. You can come in our office and we'll fit you. We'll fit you with the correct brace. We'll make sure that we understand the diagnosis and what the goal of that prescription is and what the goal of the patient is to get back to a before injury situation and so we work with the patient to meet all those goals with our equipment.
Speaker 1:We could go down a rabbit hole with bracing, but I'm aware that having the correct fit for your braces and having somebody who knows exactly what angle that appendage needs to be held in, absolutely it's a very big deal.
Speaker 2:Well, you know, with with the healing process there comes flexion and extension and degrees of that. And if you were, they're not treated correctly at that given time. And working with the PT to make sure that those goals are met and those braces are set correctly, then you don't have the correct outcome. You know we explain with our cold therapy. You know how long you should use it during the day. You shouldn't sit there all day with a cold therapy unit on your leg or your knee. You know 20 to 30 minutes two or three times a day post exercise and rehab.
Speaker 1:So when you walk into JET Medical, you get a whole lot more than medical equipment. You get people who are going to help you get the best outcome after whatever it is that you're dealing with. I mean, you're in a difficult situation. You need help.
Speaker 2:Absolutely.
Speaker 1:You should have people who are looking out after you.
Speaker 2:Well, you know anytime that you're not at 100% of good health. It sometimes is frustrating, so you don't need to be fighting with equipment or trying to figure out where to get this particular bandage or where to get a particular brace. Yes, you can go to some of these big box stores and get the brace off the shelf, but it may not be exactly what you need. So we pride ourselves in understanding the diagnosis, understanding what the script, the goal of the script and providing the correct race.
Speaker 1:Well, Joe, tell me about your journey. How did you end up in this very interesting place?
Speaker 2:Well, when I graduated the University of Alabama, I worked for HealthSouth for a while in the outpatient medical services, and there was this lady who took me under her wing, mary Holden, and she said I think that you need to be in the work comp industry. And I said I don't know what that is, but tell me more about it. And so she was a great mentor. And so I got into the work comp industry. That will cost containment, the patient care, making sure that once the patient had an injury, we determined a care path and got them back to a pre-injury condition. And so through that I evolved, through working through companies that had that managed care piece, and in 2015, durable medical equipment was always a piece of that industry. And so in 2015, mr Billy Jett said I'm interested in selling and I said I am interested in buying, and so it was a great fit.
Speaker 2:He had a great company, you know, had a stellar reputation throughout the industry, and so he had a book of business I didn't have, and I had a book of business he didn't have, and so I bought the company, married it, and one of the things that pushed me to be a business owner was that my previous jobs you know, headquarters was on the West Coast or in the Northeast or in the Midwest.
Speaker 2:They were non-local and so I thought I want to be the guy who can know what my customer needs and I don't have to pass it up by four or five, 15 people to get an answer. I can execute what is needed, I can make a decision and the patient is happy. The patient's taken care of. The customer doesn't have to wonder what's going on. So my goal in all this as a business owner is to make sure that the patient is taken care of. You know, sometimes and it doesn't happen very often you know you may have an unhappy client customer, but we work with that customer to make sure that they have the best care and that their goals are met and that they feel like they have had the best customer service with the best product that they could have.
Speaker 1:I think that's a common misconception that people have, being uninitiated, that they can just go into any old place and get the same standard of care inside of the medical community work, and how extensive those corporations can be and how they're driven by different standards and norms, even inside of an industry that's supposed to take care of people. They all do, but there's a spectrum.
Speaker 2:Absolutely. The insurance industry is not what it was say 10 years ago. You know they don't reimburse, they don't pay for things that the patient really needs, and it's disappointing to see the customer come in and they go. Well, I have this insurance.
Speaker 2:Well, I hate to tell you but that's not covered. So we look at that and we try to find that best option, that happy medium, that and provide them with affordable care. You know, one of the myths in this industry is that Medicare and Blue Cross, they'll buy me a scooter, a mobility scooter, They'll buy me a power chair. Well, I haven't found one that paid 100% yet. You know they pay for the power mechanism on it and then that's a small piece and then they're responsible for the rest. And so we look at different avenues to make sure that they can afford and we can provide what they need to get back to a healthy standard or make their life comfortable in the condition that they're in.
Speaker 1:Right. So I mean important to note that insurance reimburses you but it doesn't take care of you, and if you want to have the best standard of care, you have to mindfully put together a medical team, and your medical equipment purveyor is going to be part of that.
Speaker 2:Well, that is true. I mean, you know, when people are sick, they're getting out of the hospital they need an advocate, they need someone to make sure that they're looking out for their best interest. And although we are a company and we're not a nonprofit, we're a profit-driven company we also keep in mind that we do the right thing by each patient and each customer every time. And so there's a lot of companies that will. And so you know there's a lot of companies that will. They're a big box store. You know we look and we advocate for our patients and our customers, whether that's through insurance, whether we can look and say, okay, they'll pay this or they won't pay that. No-transcript.
Speaker 1:Well, joe, I mean this is extensive. So what do you? There's got to be another part of your life right when you have fun. What do you do when you're not working?
Speaker 2:99% of the time. That's fine, and I have three children and a wife, so we do. We like to travel, we love the beach, I like to hunt fish, spend time, you know, just sitting around the pool at home and relaxing. But relaxing does not, is not a real big part of my life right now, with three kids and a business and being able to serve a city. So you know, we take it one day at a time.
Speaker 2:My son's on the fishing team, my girls play sports, I have a daughter graduating this year, so this time of year is a little bit hectic. We got to get one graduated, then we'll get one graduated next year and I'll have a couple of years to breathe before my son graduates. But you know, our church family is very important. We go to Central Church of Christ in Tuscaloosa and so it's just. You know, you try to keep a balance and so generally on Saturdays we try to cut the phone off and concentrate completely on family, and then Sunday, you know, our focus is worship and family time. So there is a balance. But being a business owner is not an eight to five job and neither is serving the citizens that I serve as mayor for.
Speaker 1:I mean, our life is defined by our challenges, isn't it?
Speaker 2:Yes, you're exactly right, and how you handle those challenges, it builds character. Sometimes you're like really, and I was talking to one of my colleagues last night and he goes now why do we do this? And I said because we were called to do this. We have a purpose and our purpose. I look around and I see children, I see families, and if the right people were not serving our community, if the right business owners were not in position to do the right thing, then I see people taking advantage of people who don't know the system, and so at that point I feel passionate about doing the right thing especially in my company for our city, our citizens, and giving our kids of tomorrow an example that things just don't happen. You have to work hard, you have to be consistent and even when you are faced with these challenges, you have to do the right thing, no matter what, you have to do the right thing and be kind.
Speaker 1:Agreed. How do you want our listeners to remember Jet Medical? What would you like them to take away?
Speaker 2:But we can. We are a source for them when they need any type of medical equipment. We want to be, you know, a partner for them. We are a one-stop shop for your durable medical equipment needs. You know, anything from a temporary ramping to get you in your home with wheelchairs to get you set up in home with a bed. Mobility to your monthly supplies.
Speaker 1:You know there's people who need monthly supplies, and we can do that as well. How can listeners learn more? Tell us how do we contact you. How do we find Jet Medical?
Speaker 2:you, how do we find Jet Medical? Well, jet Medical has a website at wwwjetmedcocom that's J-E-T-M-E-D-C-Ocom. You can call our office at 205-481-9344. And we're real easy, we're real accessible. So we're waiting to serve the needs of the industry.
Speaker 1:It's been a real pleasure, Joe. Thank you so much for coming by and talking to me about everything.
Speaker 2:Well, Patricia, I appreciate the opportunity and I look forward to speaking with you again in the future.
Speaker 1:Absolutely.