“The biggest thing we dispense here is information and hope,” said Stefan Sleigh, proprietor of MedSolutions, a medical equipment and supply company located in Brentwood. “Our motto is ‘Making Life Easier,’ and that’s basically what we do for everybody: try and make their lives a little bit easier in this chaotic thing we call health care.”

As Sleigh led a tour through the building – a fully stocked retail showroom, a cluster of office workstations and 3,600 square feet of backroom space for inventory storage and product maintenance – he amplified on his assessment of the health care industry.

“It’s in huge turmoil, with no real clear vision to where it’s headed,” he said. “Patients don’t understand the system. The payers are at complete odds with the patients. The manufacturers are in denial.

“However, in all the conflict, there’s a huge opportunity to do things differently, serve the patients and customers and make a good business out of it. We have a system that can’t sustain itself and expectations that can’t pay for themselves. So as a provider, you have to find a way to take care of the patient and do it in the most cost-effective manner so we can keep the doors open.”

Sleigh calls MedSolutions a “rehab mobility company,” but the company consists of three branches: worker’s compensation claims, retail and Medicare/Medi-Cal/private insurance. Product sales, repairs and rentals are handled out of the Brentwood location while MedSolutions’ sister branch, located down in Santa Ana, handles all worker’s compensation claims. The bright and well-organized retail display area offers myriad health-related products, including power chairs and scooters, diabetic footwear, bracing

and support devices, compression stockings, wellness supplies, ramps and vehicle lifts, cold therapy units, wheelchairs and continuous-passive-motion machines for individuals who have undergone joint surgery. If you can’t find something in store, MedSolutions provides a huge catalog of products online.

“We spend a lot of time answering questions, showing clients product and explaining the insurance side of things,” said Sleigh. “We also work with local doctors, hospitals and pharmacies so we’re not tripping over each other, and we try the best we can to refer business back and forth.”

Med Solutions has been in business since 2001. Originally owned by East County resident Michael Williams, Sleigh purchased the company in March of 2011. Sleigh spent 30 years in the corporate world, immersed in various ventures outside the health care industry – building materials, HVAC, consulting – and has lived and worked throughout the United States and in Canada and Mexico City.

“In 2010, at 55 years old, I decided I didn’t want to work for anyone else. I wanted to buy a business, and health care was where I wanted to go,” he said. “The previous owner was looking to sell. It was a no-brainer that this was what I wanted.”

Sleigh and his wife relocated from Michigan for the new venture. In moving to Brentwood, the Southern California native calls learning about and exploring Northern California “a grand adventure.”

As an owner with no previous professional connection to the health care industry, Sleigh cites his lack of baggage as a boon; clear-eyed, he’s intent on calmly steering MedSolutions toward a successful future. In fact, the company is already moving in the right direction – growth. This past year, the company grew 6 percent, and its core business – worker’s comp – grew 18 percent.

Sleigh is also focused on building and maintaining a strong staff. A majority of his 15 employees have been with the company since its inception. According to Sleigh, they’re knowledgeable, cross-trained – and enthuiastic – about the industry.

“The service we provide is community based,” Sleigh said. “There’s so much confusion, even with the doctors, so if you want straight answers in English, call us, e-mail us or stop by.

“When it comes to the insurance processes, there are a lot of hoops to jump through, but we’re the ones jumping through them for you. At the end of the day, it’s about letting people know that they’re cared for, and that’s what makes this business rewarding.”

MedSolutions is located at 8157 Brentwood Blvd. in Brentwood. For more information, call 925-634-7791 or visit www.medsolutionsllc.com.

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