How to Invest in a Hospital Management System - Understanding the Pricing

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One of the first things that come into our mind
before we decide to purchase something, is the
cost. Whether it be a Netflix subscription or a
new bike, or a business-related purchase, the
price plays an important role. While acquiring
Hospital Management Software also, pricing is an
important factor to be considered. Hospital
management software is much more complex than a
movie ticket or an automobile, and the costs that
are involved in it are also a bit more
complicated. We have previously discussed the
various advantages of using hospital management
software. Here lets break down the costs
involved in implementing it. How the price is
determined - The Number of Beds The cost of a
hospital management system mainly depends on the
number of beds in the hospital. As a rule of
thumb, we can say that the price goes up as the
number of beds increases. So generally as a
hospital grows and develops, a need for a system
with higher capacity comes up. This gives you two
options either get high capacity, a
non-upgradable system, or get a system with the
capacity you require, but which can be upgraded
for better features. The latter is preferable, as
in the former you end up paying for features you
may not require currently.
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Online or Offline System Whether the system is
online or offline brings up different kinds of
expenditures. Generally for offline software,
the firm that provides the system will simply
install the software for a one-time fee. The
hospital will have to acquire servers by itself
and manage its own data, install the cables,
network its systems, and generally, have to deal
much more with the hardware aspect than online
software.  In such cases, extra costs other than
the cost of the software itself will come up.
Also, a dedicated team for managing the system
will be required for general maintenance. Online
systems generally simplify these functions, as
the firm providing the system will be dealing
with the software aspect, as well as most of the
hardware aspects(such as servers, etc. Computer
systems and other hardware will have to be
purchased by the hospital as required). In this
case, the system exists like a subscription
service, where for an annual or monthly fee, the
firm providing the system will maintain and
manage the servers and the system. Theres much
less hardware to be acquired from other sources.
A simple PC connected to the internet can easily
access the system. The human resources required
from the hospital for maintaining the system are
much less. So in general Online Systems are more
cost-effective, especially in the long run.
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Implementation Cost Implementation cost is
another aspect to be considered while
implementing a hospital management system. If
existing software has to be replaced by new
software, the data from the old system will have
to be imported into the new system. The cost
involved in this, as mentioned above, will depend
on the amount of data, calculated as the number
of beds. If the hospital has been storing all the
information in paper format, resources may be
needed to enter this data into the system.
Implementation costs also involve setting up
access for various doctors and departments. The
implementation also requires providing training
for various employees, which will be different
for different departments. It is important to
ensure that the training is included in the
implementation cost while choosing the system.
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Other Factors A good hospital management system
would offer all the features that are generally
required. The software can differ in the level of
sophistication, from simple accounting software
to software that provides updates to patients
using an app or SMS. The price can vary according
to the level of sophistication. Most software
firms offering hospital management software are
willing to provide additional features, but this
usually comes at an additional price, depending
on the resources required Simple software is
easily available for a lower cost, but as the
functionalities required to increase, the price
also naturally increases.  Another factor that
may bring up extra costs is the technical support
provided by the companies. All though most online
systems get support throughout the subscription
period, in the case of offline systems, inquiries
have to be made to know if additional costs may
be incurred for support. As mentioned in
previous blogs, the possibility of upgrades has
to be considered. Online systems cost less for
upgrades, as the hospital expands, and for better
features. Considering this, online systems may
turn out to be cost-effective in the long run.
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Overall, the costs involved could be divided into
implementation costs and maintenance costs, both
of which are dependent on the number of beds. For
offline software, an annual or monthly software
subscription fee has to be considered, which may
or may not cover the implementation and
maintenance costs. The economic benefits of
getting offline software and investing in servers
and hardware and that of getting online software
and paying an annual subscription fee have to be
compared, which could differ for different
hospitals. The Hospital Management Software is a
long-term investment, saving up by getting
software with fewer features, may cost you a lot
more with frequent expensive upgrades required as
the hospital grows. Additional costs that may
arise in the form of support, server maintenance,
extra features, and possible upgrades have to be
looked into while making a decision. The
Hospital Management Software is a long-term
investment, saving up by getting the software
with fewer features may cost you a lot more with
frequent expensive upgrades required as the
hospital grows.