The Hindu Business Line : Hospitals see IT as growth tool

Mid-sized hospitals of 50-200-bed strength have started to look at IT for their brand equity, to improve service and, in turn, their bottomlines, according to speakers at a workshop on IT in healthcare here.

A Frost & Sullivan study of 65 mid-sized hospitals corroborates this. The hospitals are willing to adopt technology more than ever before in order to meet the competition and benefit from opportunities such as medical tourism and clinical trials.

They are keen and ready to invest across the IT segment — in hardware, networking, software, storage and RFID — according to Mr Zubin Daruwalla, Industry Manager, Healthcare Practice, and Mr Sandeep Sinha, Program Manager, Healthcare Practice, F&S, told Business Line.

Although IT started offering healthcare solutions a decade back, it remains largely untapped. Hospital chiefs' attitude has shifted to considering a long-term IT roadmap, investment in quality products and total solutions. With the right strategy, they could expect a better grip on routine processes.— MIS (management information systems), a streamlined and electronic management of patient records; more efficient processes, improved customer satisfaction, reduced cost on inventory and fewer billing hassles.

Healthcare In Metros

According to F&S, this band of hospitals is a key peg in the healthcare segment as it covers low- and middle-income people in tier 1 and 2 citiesThe large corporate hospitals are digitally well ahead. F&S, which roped in Microsoft, Cisco Systems, IBM, Siemens, Sobha Renaissance and SAP to address Bangalore's mid-segment hospital brass, is holding a similar exercise in Mumbai and New Delhi next month.

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