Picture archiving and communication system (PACS) maintenance on an individual site basis has historically been a complex and costly challenge. With the advent of enterprise-wide PACS projects such as the Virtual Radi...
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Picture archiving and communication system (PACS) maintenance on an individual site basis has historically been a complex and costly challenge. With the advent of enterprise-wide PACS projects such as the Virtual Radiology Environment (VRE) project, the challenge of a maintenance program with even more complexities has presented itself. The approach of the project management team for the VRE project is not one of reactive maintenance, but one of highly proactive planning and negotiations, in hopes of capitalizing on the economies of scale of an enterprise-wide PACS maintenance program. A proactive maintenance program is one aspect of life-cycle management. As with any capital acquisition, life-cycle management may be used to manage the specific project aspects related to PACS. The purpose of an enterprise-wide warranty and maintenance life-cycle management approach is to maintain PACS at its maximum operational efficiency and utilization levels through a flexible, shared, yet symbiotic relationship between local, regional, and vendor resources. These goals include providing maximum operational performance levels on a local, regional, and enterprise basis, while maintaining acceptable costs and resource utilization levels. This goal must be achieved without negatively impacting point of care activities, regardless of changes to the clinical business environment. Copyright (C) 2000 by W.B. Saunders Company.
The objective of the study was to evaluate current marketplace conditions and strategies employed by major picture archiving and communication systems (PACS) vendors in the creation of alternative financing strategies...
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The objective of the study was to evaluate current marketplace conditions and strategies employed by major picture archiving and communication systems (PACS) vendors in the creation of alternative financing strategies, to enhance the diffusion of filmless imaging. Data were collected from the major PACS vendors in the forms of survey questionnaires and review of existing leases. Topics evaluated in the survey included current financing options available, foreseeable changes in PACS financing, role of third-party financiers, and creation of risk-sharing arrangements. Generic leases were also reviewed evaluating the presence or absence of several key variables including technology obsolescence protection, hardware/software upgrades, end-of-term options, determination of fair market value, functionality/acceptance testing, uptime guarantees, and workflow management consulting. Eight of the 10 PACS vendors surveyed participated in the data collection. The vast majority of current PACS implementations (60% to 90%) occur through direct purchase, with conventional leasing (operating or capital) accounting for only 5% to 30% of PACS installations. The majority of respondents view fee-for-lease arrangements and other forms of risk sharing as increasing importance for future PACS financing. The specific targets for such risk-sharing arrangements consist of small hospital and privately owned imaging centers. Leases currently offered range in duration from 3 to 5 years and frequently offer technology obsolescence protection with upgrades, multiple end-of-term options, and some form of acceptance testing. A number of important variables frequently omitted from leases include uptime guarantees, flexibility in changing financing or vendors, and incorporation of expected productivity/operational efficiency gains. As vendors strive to increase the penetration of PACS into the radiology marketplace, there will be a shift from conventional financing (loan or purchase) to leasing. Fee-
This article illustrates how management in one type of service industry, the health maintenance organization (HMO), have attempted to formalize pricing. This effort is complicated by both the intangibility of the serv...
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This article illustrates how management in one type of service industry, the health maintenance organization (HMO), have attempted to formalize pricing. This effort is complicated by both the intangibility of the service delivered and the relatively greater influence in service industries of non-cost price factors such as accessibility, psychology, and delays. The presentation describes a simple computerized approach that allows the marketing manager to formally estimate the effect of incremental changes in rates on the firm's projected patterns of enrollment growth and net revenues. The changes in turn reflect underlying variations in the mix of pricing influences including psychological and other factors. Enrollment projections are crucial to the firm's financial planning and staffing. In the past, most HMO enrollment and revenue projections of this kind were notoriously unreliable. The approach described here makes it possible for HMOs to fine-tune their pricing policies. It also provides a formal and easily understood mechanism by which management can evaluate and reach consensus on alternative scenarios for enrollment growth, staff recruitment and capacity expansion.
The author examines the position of physicians in the health care channel on the basis of Transaction Cost Analysis. Propositions are offered that explain recent vertical integration. Moreover, a conceptual model of t...
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The author examines the position of physicians in the health care channel on the basis of Transaction Cost Analysis. Propositions are offered that explain recent vertical integration. Moreover, a conceptual model of the future health care channel is offered for capitated pricing.
作者:
Loewy, Erich H.Department of Medicine
The University of Illinois College of Medicine at Peoria Peoria 61658-1649 Illinois Box 1649 United States
In this paper I: (1) Describe something of the present situation in the United States and briefly contrast this with the state of affairs in other nations of the industrialised world. I emphasise health care but also ...
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The traditional view of hospital competition has posited that hospitals compete primarily along 'quality' dimensions, in the form of fancy equipment to attract admitting physicians and pleasant surroundings to...
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The traditional view of hospital competition has posited that hospitals compete primarily along 'quality' dimensions, in the form of fancy equipment to attract admitting physicians and pleasant surroundings to entice patients. Price competition among hospitals is thought to be non-existent. This paper estimates the effects of various hospital market characteristics on hospital prices and expenses in an attempt to determine the form of hospital competition. The results suggest that both price and quality competition are greater in markets that are less concentrated, although the net effect of the two on prices is insignificant. It appears, therefore, that, despite important distortions, hospital markets are not immune to standard competitive forces.
Global pharmaceutical mergers have spread the huge costs of research and enabled companies to sell their products in countries where they previously lacked a presence. Here's how the Beecham-SmithKline Beckman mar...
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