By Vinicíus V. Guedes
Commercial and Marketing Manager at TDSA Systems.
This guide presents a decision-making process to help you to select the best software for your office, clinic or hospital. Each of the following steps contains critical questions that should be asked during the process:
1) Look to see what’s available in the medical software market.
The research phase is one of the most interesting parts of the software decision-making process. Looking through websites, blogs and downloadable documents will help you to understand how the medical software market works. If you already know your market, use this step to see what’s new. This is the moment to find out what functions each software package offers, to understand how they are implemented (for example if they are local or run via a website) and to get to know the terminology used in the segment. It is also important to be able to anticipate how the new system will improve your current business practices. As this is a new investment, it is important to know what opportunities it will offer to improve the efficiency of the business.
The most important tasks in the first stage are:
– To gain a good understanding of the basic characteristics of the medical software;
– To find out what new suppliers are available and what new functions they can offer;
– To get to know the differences between local implementations and those based on the website;
– To identify the 10 ways in which the software can make the business more efficient.
2) Assign priorities to the software’s requirements
Now is the time to focus on the identification and prioritization of your software requirements, i.e. the capacities and characteristics that you will need from the new software. This is a critical part of the process of choosing new software. When you know exactly what you need in the new medical software, you’ll be in a better position to take the correct decision for your business. Start out by identifying precisely the challenges that must be faced and in what areas your current software is not working as well as you’d hoped. Then draw up an Excel table with all the functions and characteristics that the new software should have to overcome the deficiencies of your current software. Try to involve all the users of the system so that they can make suggestions. Finally, prioritize the list of characteristics that it ‘must have’ against those ‘it would be good to have’.
The important tasks of the second stage:
– Identifying the challenges the software must resolve;
– Identifying the deficiencies of your current programs;
– Drawing up an Excel table of the new software’s desired characteristics;
– Revise the list with other users to get their feedback;
– Assign priority to the characteristics it ‘must have’ against those ‘it would be good to have’.
3) Sell the idea to the decision-makers
At this stage, you now have a good idea of what’s available in the market today and what you need. You’ll probably be very keen to implement a new system. But wait!
If you aren’t (yet) the person who makes the purchasing decisions and need approval from a determined department, you’ll have another challenge: convincing the decision-makers. To sell the idea it is important to be able to present the benefits that the new software will bring and show that these benefits outweigh the costs. Benefits that might be mentioned could include improved collection of information, better patient care, reduction of operating errors, and meeting the legal requirements in cases where the legislation demands updates. The costs of the software include, for example, user licenses, services, training and the miscellaneous expenses associated with organizational change.
The important tasks of stage 3:
– Identify the decision maker(s);
– Present the challenges and deficiencies of the current software;
– Explain how the new software will resolve those problems;
– Prepare the budget needed to buy the new software;
– Ask permission to buy the software.
4) Make a list of software providers
Having a list of some suppliers of medical software is one of the most complicated steps. The reason is that it is very difficult to select and evaluate more than 5 suppliers. So narrowing down the list to five candidates to be analyzed in-depth is a critical process. The challenge is that there are a large number of suppliers of medical software, but only a small number than can really meet your needs. Yet there are still some criteria that can help you to reduce the size of the list. For example, make sure that they correspond to your specialty, the size of your business and the functional requirements that have been set as priorities. Next, ask the suppliers for their prices and eliminate those that are over your budget. Keep the definitive list in hand and increase the participation of the selected suppliers for their sales process.
The important tasks of stage 4:
– Determining which software satisfies your specialty;
– Determining which software is suited to your size;
– Determining which software satisfies your most important needs;
– Determining which suppliers are within your budget;
– Making a list of up to 5 suppliers.
5) Explain the project to the salespeople
The best salespeople are those who help their potential customers to resolve their problems. That’s why software suppliers should be aware of the real needs of their customers so that they can better communicate how their software can help. For example, if you tell the salesperson what functions are most important to the organization, they will be able to dedicate more time to demonstrating those characteristics.
The important tasks of stage 5:
– Explain to the software suppliers how they will be assessed;
– Show the salespeople your list of priority needs;
– Show the salespeople who their competitors are in the selection process;
– Explain the selection process to the salespeople ;
– Explain to each salesperson what it is you’re expecting of them during the sales process.
6) Assess the software demonstrations
Observing the demos is perhaps the most important step in the software selection process. One can see the software in action and really identify what it can do. If necessary, carry out more than one demo. To get the most out of the information from these presentations, you should give the salesperson a list of requirements (a demo script) that details exactly what you need to see in the demonstration, for example; appointment scheduling, patient records, etc. Make sure that you set a good date for the demo which key people in your organization will be able to attend.
The important tasks of Step 6:
– Prepare the requirements that the demo should include and send them to suppliers;
– Schedule the date and time for the demonstration;
– Invite the right people in your organization;
– Talk to your colleagues to find out their opinions.
7) Software Classification
After the demo, you should have been able to identify which supplier has the best product for you. However, you still shouldn’t take a decision without first rating the products assessed. You should be sure that your favorite supplier is the one that can provide the most characteristics that you ‘must have’ and also that ‘it would be good to have’. Meanwhile, gather all the data collected during the demonstrations to compare and evaluate which most exactly fit your requirements. Get the opinion of your team, especially on how easy they find it to use. If you believe that you already have a winner, wait a little to convey your decision. There are still some important steps to take.
The important tasks of Stage 7:
– Eliminate the suppliers who do not meet the basic function requirements;
– Make a list of the suppliers who are still in the selection process;
– Evaluate the software based on how easy it is to use.
8) Create a software rating system
Get and compare the proposed prices; even though this may not be a fundamental factor in the choice, for many decision-makers it is the main one in choosing a supplier. During this stage it is important to request a detailed breakdown of the proposed price, including all the costs associated with the system. This includes the software license, adaptation, support, training and other expenses. Also ask the supplier to offer you further guidance on the hardware and network that will be needed. Keep in mind that there are different ways to set prices (registration, license, etc.).
Important tasks in Step 8:
– Get a detailed price breakdown;
– Give the supplier the necessary data for the installation of the software proposed, for example the number of users;
– Make sure that the proposals are complete: software, service, training, implementation, etc.
– Compare the proposals on the same terms.
9) Verify the references and viability of the software provider
Now, you’ll already know that the system suits your needs and that the price is good or at least acceptable. The final critical task will be to check whether the company really is what it says it is. Ask the supplier for references from one or more customers who have similar characteristics to your business.
The important tasks of Step 9:
– Ask the supplier for references from one or more customers.
(Inspired by the article “Ten Steps Towards Choosing the Right Medical Software).
TDSA Sistemas develops management software for clinics, polyclinics, outpatient hospitals, blood banks and blood centers.
