The policies of used equipment auctioneer at Centurion Services Group are clear, the items sold are as is and where is, which means that you get what you get the way you get it, but is this safe? Are hospitals at risk of spreading infection inadvertently?Centurion Services Group and Auction-mart are known in the medical industry as one of the heavy hitters of selling used medical equipment. They sell 1000s of pieces of medical equipment each month on their website www.centurionservice.com to anybody who sets up an account with customer service representative Kylen Cieslak. Ebay makes medical equipment sellers post a disclaimer, "The sale of this item may be subject to regulation by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration and state and local regulatory agencies. If so, do not bid on this item unless you are an authorized purchaser. There are no disclaimers on Centurions Services or Auction Marts website like on other auction sites like ebay: basically anyone can purchase equipment from Centurion Services. But the problem is not the purchaser but the seller. How is the equipment handled at the auction house? Who is cleaning this equipment? Who is ultimately responsible for infections or contaminated equipment getting out to the rest of the world. Erik Wilensky, who is the main auctioneer and Vice President at Centurion says, "We dont do anything to this equipment, we bring it in from the hospital and sell it...We dont plug it in, examine it or anything...This is an as-is auction." Hospitals like Health South, St. Francis Healthcare System, Sault Ste Marie, and Silver Cross Hospital, who all let Centurion Services and Auction mart dispose of their equipment, could be selling medical equipment that is infected and no would know any different.
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