EHR, PACS, RIS and equipment integration
Scope, project management & OEM documentation
Biomedical & IT teams deployed nationwide
Dedicated service desk for Nigerian facilities
Hospital IT Integration Services connect your disparate clinical and administrative systems—like your Electronic Medical Record (EMR), Laboratory Information System (LIS), Radiology Information System (RIS/PACS), and billing software—into a single, cohesive network. For a hospital CIO or Operations Director, this service eliminates the crippling inefficiency and clinical risk of data silos, where patient information is trapped in one department. It solves the problem of manual data re-entry, which causes errors and wastes valuable staff time. Instead of a doctor looking at a printed lab result and typing it into the EMR, the result flows automatically and instantly from the lab analyzer to the patient's chart. This service is essential for tertiary hospitals, multi-branch diagnostic centres, and any facility aiming for digital transformation, improved clinical outcomes, and streamlined operations. It's the technical backbone that makes modern, data-driven healthcare possible in a complex environment like Nigeria.
Ad-hoc integration tasks, like connecting a new Sysmex hematology analyzer to your LIS, typically cost between NGN 450,000 and NGN 1,800,000, depending on the complexity of the interface. Bundled annual support and maintenance contracts for your existing integrations range from NGN 5,000,000 to NGN 25,000,000 per year. A full, turnkey project to integrate a new EMR with your existing LIS, RIS, and billing systems starts from NGN 20,000,000 and can exceed NGN 150,000,000 for large, multi-site hospitals. Key cost drivers include the number of systems to be integrated, the age and API capability of your existing software (modern FHIR-based systems are easier than older, proprietary ones), the volume of historical data to be migrated, and the level of documentation required for management or international NGO donor reporting.
Franance provides detailed, transparent quotes that break down these costs, ensuring you only pay for what your facility truly needs.
The absolute cheapest option is using a freelance developer for a single, point-to-point integration, which can cost between NGN 250,000 and NGN 800,000. This price typically covers only the initial connection and excludes critical components like robust error handling, security audits, documentation, and any form of post-implementation support or SLA. The risks are substantial: if your EMR vendor pushes a software update, the integration will likely break, and the freelance developer may be unavailable or charge a high emergency fee to fix it. This approach often leads to "vendor finger-pointing," where the EMR, LIS, and integration developers all blame each other for problems, leaving your hospital with a non-functional system and significant clinical risk from potential data loss or corruption.
A cheap integration that is unreliable is more expensive than no integration at all.
An affordable, value-optimized strategy is a managed integration support bundle, which typically costs between NGN 7,000,000 and NGN 20,000,000 annually. This shifts the focus from a one-time, high-risk project to a continuous, managed service that guarantees uptime and data integrity. Instead of just building a connection and walking away, this bundle includes proactive monitoring of all your data interfaces, regular system health checks, management of software updates, and a set number of support hours for troubleshooting or minor enhancements. This approach provides budget predictability and turns your integration infrastructure from a fragile liability into a reliable asset. It's the most sensible option for any serious hospital CIO or operations director.
Franance’s managed service bundles are designed to provide this long-term value and peace of mind.
An Annual Maintenance Contract (AMC) for IT integration services typically costs 10-15% of the initial project implementation fee, per year. This covers labour for troubleshooting, remote support, and ensuring the existing interfaces remain functional. A Comprehensive Maintenance Contract (CMC) is less common for pure software integration but may apply if the vendor provides the server hardware (the "integration engine"). A CMC would cost 18-25% and include hardware replacement in addition to all the AMC support services. The primary difference is that an AMC covers the service and expertise (labour), while a CMC covers labour plus the physical hardware and software license renewals for the integration platform.
For most Nigerian hospitals, an AMC or a managed service agreement is the standard. You own the server, and the provider manages the software and connections. This gives you predictable operational expenses for support. A CMC model might be offered by a provider who delivers a complete "integration-as-a-service" package on their own hardware, which can simplify your internal IT management but may lead to higher long-term costs and vendor lock-in.
| Feature | Annual Maintenance Contract (AMC) | Comprehensive Maintenance Contract (CMC) |
|---|---|---|
| Scope | Labour, remote support, software patches | All AMC features + hardware replacement + licenses |
| Typical Cost | 10-15% of project cost annually | 18-25% of project cost annually |
| Best For | Hospitals with their own IT infrastructure | Hospitals wanting a fully outsourced solution |
| Cash Flow | Predictable annual support cost | Higher, but all-inclusive annual cost |
Choosing the right model depends on your in-house IT capacity and your preference for CAPEX vs. OPEX.
Contact Franance today for a no-obligation assessment and a detailed quote tailored to your hospital's specific integration needs.
You can find qualified providers through three main channels: direct referrals from your EMR, LIS, or PACS vendor (like Cerner, MEDITECH, or Carestream); specialized healthcare IT service companies based in Lagos, Abuja, and Port Harcourt; and recommendations from other hospital CIOs or biomedical leads in your network. The selection process must involve rigorous due diligence beyond their sales pitch. Insist on seeing proof of their legal status in Nigeria and their technical credentials. A provider without a physical, verifiable office and proper CAC registration is a significant risk.
Before signing any contract, your procurement team must verify their Corporate Affairs Commission (CAC) documents, Tax Clearance Certificate (TCC), and any claims of OEM partnership. Ask for at least three recent, relevant client references in Nigeria and speak to them directly. Franance simplifies this by pre-vetting all our technical partners, ensuring they meet stringent corporate and technical standards before they are ever assigned to your project.
A provider who cannot produce these documents immediately is not a serious contender for a critical project.
Franance is a verified provider of end-to-end Hospital IT Integration Services, offering a single point of accountability from strategy to long-term support. Our service stack is built on a foundation of deep local expertise and global best practices, covering everything from initial workflow analysis and system architecture design to interface development, rigorous testing, and 24/7 managed support with a clear SLA. We have nationwide coverage, with technical teams strategically located to support hospitals across Nigeria, not just in major cities.
The best provider is not necessarily the biggest company, but the one with the most relevant, verifiable experience with your specific technology stack and a proven track record of long-term support in Nigeria. A provider who has successfully connected a GE Healthcare Centricity PACS to a Cerner EMR in two other Nigerian hospitals is a better choice for you than a generic IT firm that has never worked with those systems, even if they are a larger company. The key evaluation criteria are their portfolio of live, referenceable projects, the technical depth of their engineers (not just salespeople), and their structured approach to project management and post-deployment support.
Look for a partner who speaks the language of clinical workflows, not just IT jargon. They should be able to discuss how integration will speed up patient discharge or reduce diagnostic errors, not just talk about APIs and data protocols.
A standard Scope of Work (SOW) for an integration project includes six distinct phases, typically spanning 4 to 12 weeks for a single major interface (e.g., LIS to EMR). It begins with a detailed discovery and ends with a formal handover and a period of post-live support. The SOW is the single most important document in the project; it must be detailed, specific, and mutually agreed upon before any work commences. It protects both you and the provider by clearly defining what success looks like.
The phases are:
The process follows a structured methodology, starting with a deep dive into your clinical and operational workflows. An integration specialist will sit with your lab, radiology, and clinical staff to understand exactly how data needs to flow. Based on this, they design the integration using a central "integration engine" (like Mirth Connect) which acts as a traffic cop for data. This is superior to brittle, point-to-point connections. Interfaces are then developed using international standards like HL7 for clinical data and DICOM for images from equipment like a Siemens Artis Q ceiling C-arm system. All development and testing are done in a separate, sandboxed environment to avoid any risk to your live patient data. Only after your team has thoroughly tested and signed off in the test environment (UAT) is a go-live scheduled.
This standards-based approach ensures that as you add more systems in the future, they can be connected easily without having to reinvent the wheel each time. It's about building a scalable data infrastructure, not just a one-off connection.
A typical Service Level Agreement (SLA) is tiered based on the severity of an issue, with guaranteed response times. For a critical failure (e.g., the entire LIS-to-EMR interface is down, stopping all results flow), the response time should be 1-2 hours, with a target resolution of 4-6 hours. For an urgent issue (e.g., one specific type of result is failing to transmit), response should be within 4 hours. For routine requests (e.g., adding a new, non-critical data field), a response within 24 hours is standard. The SLA should also include a guaranteed uptime for the integration engine, typically 99.5% or higher, measured monthly. A strong SLA includes penalty clauses, such as service credits, if the provider fails to meet these targets.
Franance provides a transparent, client-facing dashboard where you can see real-time system status and track our performance against the agreed SLA, ensuring complete accountability.
Request a copy of Franance's standard SLA to see our commitment to uptime, rapid response, and transparent performance reporting for your critical hospital systems.
Upon completion of an integration project, you must receive a comprehensive package of documentation. This is not optional; it is a critical deliverable that ensures you are not locked into the vendor and that your system can be supported in the future. The key documents are the System Architecture Diagram, detailed Interface Specifications for each connection, a Data Mapping Document, and a Support Handover Guide. For the ongoing service, you should receive a formal Service Report after every major support incident and a summary report monthly. While there isn't a formal "certificate" for an integration itself, the service reports and UAT sign-off sheets serve as proof of a completed and validated service, which is essential for internal audits and donor reporting.
This documentation is your hospital's asset. It's the blueprint of your digital nervous system and is non-negotiable.
The integration service itself does not require a direct certificate from NAFDAC or SON, but its implementation is critical for your facility's overall compliance. The integration must ensure that the data integrity of connected systems is maintained. For example, if a medical device like a Philips IntelliVue MP70 monitor has SONCAP certification, the integration must not alter its core, certified functions. Data transmitted from a lab analyzer to an EMR must be 100% accurate to comply with medical standards and support NAFDAC-regulated reporting. If you are integrating radiation-emitting equipment governed by the NNRA, the integration must reliably transmit dose information. Most importantly, the entire integration architecture must comply with the Nigerian Data Protection Act (NDPA), ensuring patient data is encrypted, access is controlled, and all data processing is documented.
Your integration provider must demonstrate a clear understanding of these regulatory frameworks and design the system to uphold, not compromise, your compliance posture.
Preventive maintenance (PM) for IT integration is a scheduled, proactive service, typically performed quarterly, to ensure the system remains stable, secure, and efficient. Unlike hardware PM, this involves checking the health of the software and data flows. The process takes 2-4 hours and is usually done remotely. It involves a technician connecting to your integration server to review system logs, check performance metrics, and apply any necessary software patches in a controlled manner. This prevents the common problem of small errors accumulating over time, eventually leading to a major system failure.
A digital log of all PM activities is maintained, providing a clear audit trail of the system's health and maintenance history.
The emergency repair process begins the moment you log a "critical" ticket with the provider's helpdesk, typically via phone or a dedicated portal. An engineer should engage in remote triage within 15-30 minutes. The first step is remote diagnostics to understand the point of failure—is it a network issue, a database connection problem, a failed software service, or a problem with one of the endpoint systems? Using secure remote access, the engineer will attempt to resolve the issue immediately. If the problem is a physical server failure (e.g., a failed power supply or hard drive) and the provider's contract includes hardware support, an engineer will be dispatched from the nearest hub (e.g., Lagos, Abuja) with the necessary parts.
The goal is to restore service as quickly as possible, with a clear communication protocol to keep your IT team and hospital management informed throughout the incident.
For IT integration, "spare parts" primarily refer to the components of the on-premise server that runs the integration engine. This includes redundant power supply units (PSUs), hard drives (for RAID arrays), RAM modules, and network interface cards (NICs). A good provider will insist that your server is purchased with a 3-5 year next-business-day hardware warranty from the OEM (e.g., Dell, HP). For mission-critical systems, the provider should maintain a stock of common failure items at their local office (Lagos, Abuja) for rapid swap-out, with lead times of 4-8 hours within city limits and 24-48 hours for other locations.
The key is a proactive strategy. The server specifications should be documented, and a plan for sourcing and replacing failed components must be part of the support contract. Relying on sourcing a specific server part from overseas after a failure is not a viable strategy in Nigeria.
Training is a critical phase that ensures your team can effectively use and manage the new integrated system. It is delivered in two distinct tracks. The first is Technical Training for your IT staff, a 2-4 hour session covering how to monitor the integration engine dashboard, perform basic first-level troubleshooting, and properly log a support ticket. The second is User Training for clinical and administrative staff (e.g., nurses, lab technicians), focusing on the new workflows. This is often a "train-the-trainer" session with departmental super-users. Handover is not complete until you have received all documentation and your team has formally signed off on the training.
Refresher training should be scheduled annually or whenever there is a major system upgrade to ensure knowledge is retained and new staff are brought up to speed.
A Computerized Maintenance Management System (CMMS) for IT integration treats each software interface as a trackable "asset." This system provides a central database to log all support tickets, schedule preventive maintenance tasks, and track performance KPIs for each connection. Instead of managing issues via email or WhatsApp, the CMMS provides a structured ticketing system. When a lab result fails to transmit, a ticket is raised against the "LIS-EMR Interface" asset. The CMMS then tracks the entire lifecycle of that ticket, from initial report to resolution, measuring metrics like response time and total downtime. This provides invaluable data for managing your service provider and making informed decisions about your IT infrastructure.
Franance’s client portal functions as a specialized CMMS, giving you a complete, transparent view of your integrated system's health and support history.
A power audit is a mandatory first step before deploying an on-premise integration server in Nigeria. The process involves connecting a power quality analyzer to the intended electrical circuit for 24-72 hours to capture real-world data on voltage fluctuations, frequency instability, and power outages. The output is a detailed report that is used to precisely size the required Uninterruptible Power Supply (UPS) and voltage stabilizer. Simply buying a generic UPS is not enough; it must be sized to handle the server's specific load and provide enough runtime (e.g., 30-60 minutes) to allow for a graceful shutdown or for your hospital's generator to start. This audit prevents the number one cause of data corruption and hardware failure in Nigeria: unstable power.
This small upfront investment in a proper power audit will save you from catastrophic data loss and expensive hardware replacement down the line.
Relocating an integrated IT system, for instance during a hospital renovation or move to a new building, is a high-risk procedure that requires meticulous planning and execution over a 3-5 day period. The process starts with a full backup and documentation of the existing server's network configuration (IP addresses, firewall rules, VLANs). The system is then shut down in a coordinated manner. The physical server is professionally packaged and transported. At the new site, the server is re-installed, and the critical re-commissioning phase begins. This involves re-establishing network connectivity and then methodically testing every single data interface, one by one, to confirm that data is flowing correctly before the system is declared live for users.
Attempting to simply "unplug and move" the server without a detailed plan will almost certainly result in extended downtime and data flow issues.
The deinstallation and disposal process for an integration server is primarily focused on data security and compliance. The process begins with a final, archival backup of the system's configuration and logs. Next, all software connections are formally severed, and any associated firewall rules or user accounts are deleted. The most critical step is the secure data sanitization of the server's hard drives. This involves using certified software tools to perform a multi-pass wipe of all data, rendering it completely unrecoverable. This is essential to comply with the Nigerian Data Protection Act (NDPA). Only after you receive a formal Certificate of Data Destruction should the physical hardware be disposed of in an environmentally responsible manner.
Simply deleting files or reformatting the drive is not sufficient and exposes your hospital to a major data breach risk.
Quality control is an ongoing process to ensure that your integrated systems are not just "up," but are performing correctly and accurately. This involves a combination of automated monitoring and scheduled manual checks. For example, an automated script might run every hour to compare the number of lab orders sent from the EMR to the number received by the LIS, flagging any discrepancy. Performance verification, typically done quarterly, involves measuring the end-to-end transaction time (latency) for critical workflows. For instance, measuring the time from when a doctor signs a lab order in the EMR to when it appears on the screen in the lab. This ensures the system remains fast and responsive as data volumes grow.
These QC checks provide confidence that the data your clinicians are relying on is timely, complete, and accurate.
Electrical safety testing is an annual requirement for the server hardware that hosts your integration engine. This is not about the software, but the physical safety of the IT equipment in your server room or data centre. The test, performed by a qualified engineer using a calibrated safety analyzer, verifies three key parameters: that the server's chassis is properly connected to earth ground (earth continuity), that there is no dangerous leakage current, and that the power supply's insulation is intact. Upon successful completion, a "Passed" sticker with the test date and next due date is affixed to the server. This is a critical part of your hospital's overall health and safety compliance and protects your staff and equipment from electrical hazards.
This simple annual test is a non-negotiable part of maintaining a safe and professional IT environment.
The key performance indicators (KPIs) you must track are Interface Uptime (should be >99.5%), Mean Time To Resolution (MTTR) for critical incidents (should be <4 hours), and Data Integrity (should be 100%). You should receive a formal report every month that clearly shows the performance against these KPIs. This report should not be a long, technical document, but a clear, one-page dashboard with graphs showing trends over time. This allows you, as a hospital director or CIO, to see at a glance if you are getting the value and reliability you are paying for. Access to a real-time, online dashboard is the modern standard for transparency.
These KPIs transform the service from a technical "black box" into a measurable and manageable part of your hospital's operations.
For large, one-time integration projects, payment terms are typically structured around milestones. A common structure is 40% mobilization fee upon signing the contract, 40% upon successful completion of User Acceptance Testing (UAT), and the final 20% after a 30-day period of stable operation post-go-live. For ongoing annual support contracts (AMCs), payment is usually made 100% in advance for the year, or in some cases, quarterly in advance. For government or large NGO contracts, the provider may be required to submit a Performance Bond from a reputable bank, which is typically 10% of the contract value.
It is crucial that the payment milestones are tied to concrete, verifiable deliverables (like UAT sign-off), not just the passage of time. Franance also offers flexible financing options to help spread the cost of major projects.
While most top-tier providers have their main offices in Lagos, Abuja, or Port Harcourt, the best ones offer true nationwide coverage. This is achieved through a hybrid model of a 24/7 remote support helpdesk for immediate assistance and strategically located regional engineers for on-site dispatch when required. Since over 90% of integration issues are software-related, they can be resolved remotely, making physical proximity less critical than rapid, expert remote response. For the rare instances requiring on-site presence (like a server failure or a complex new installation), a provider with regional hubs can be on-site far more quickly and cost-effectively than one based solely in Lagos.
Franance operates with technical hubs in Lagos, Abuja, Port Harcourt, and Kano. This structure allows us to provide fast, efficient on-site support to hospitals in every geopolitical zone, from Maiduguri to Calabar, ensuring you get the same high level of service regardless of your location.
Share your requirements for rollout, training and SLAs. Our service desk will prepare budgets, documentation and timelines aligned to your facility.
30+ Years
Experience delivering healthcare projects in Nigeria
OEM Certified
Biomedical & IT teams for installation, calibration & support
Nationwide
Coverage across Lagos, Abuja, Port Harcourt, Kano & beyond
Honest answers about scope, pricing, delivery and support so you can plan with confidence.
The cost for hospital IT integration ranges from ₦500,000 for a single device to over ₦15M for a full EMR/PACS rollout. For example, connecting a new Mindray BC-5300 lab analyzer to your LIS might cost ₦750,000. A project-based Statement of Work (SOW) is required for an exact quote, detailing hardware, software, and man-hour requirements for your specific facility.
A typical PACS integration project takes 6 to 12 weeks from planning to go-live. This includes 2 weeks for workflow analysis and server setup, 4 weeks for modality integration (e.g., connecting a GE Optima CT680 and a Siemens Artis Q C-Arm), 2 weeks for data migration, and 2 weeks for user training and acceptance testing. Delays often stem from inadequate network infrastructure.
An SLA for IT integration support includes guaranteed response times, uptime percentages, and a clear escalation matrix. For instance, a critical issue like a Philips IntelliVue MP70 patient monitor network failure in Lagos would have a 4-hour on-site response time. The SLA also specifies preventive maintenance schedules and penalties for non-compliance, ensuring system reliability.
We integrate a Laboratory Information System (LIS) with an Electronic Medical Record (EMR) using HL7 messaging standards. The process involves mapping data fields for orders and results between the two systems, such as connecting a Roche Cobas 6000 analyzer to a Helium Health EMR. This requires configuring an interface engine to translate and route messages securely, followed by extensive testing to ensure data accuracy.
Yes, an analog X-ray machine can be connected to a PACS using a CR (Computed Radiography) or DR (Digital Radiography) retrofit kit. A CR reader digitizes the phosphor plate image, which is then sent to the PACS server via a DICOM gateway. This process for a machine like a classic GE Proteus XR/a can be completed in 1-2 days, making it a cost-effective digital upgrade.
An Annual Maintenance Contract (AMC) covers preventive maintenance and technical support for a fixed fee, while a Comprehensive Maintenance Contract (CMC) also includes all spare parts. For a network of Dräger Perseus A500 anesthesia workstations, an AMC ensures software updates and network checks, whereas a CMC would also cover the cost of replacing a faulty network interface card, offering complete budget predictability.
A successful PACS implementation requires a dedicated Gigabit Ethernet (1 Gbps) network backbone with at least 100 Mbps to clinical workstations. For high-volume modalities like a Siemens Somatom go.Up CT scanner, a dedicated 1 Gbps connection is essential to prevent bottlenecks. The network must also be secure, with firewalls and VLANs configured to protect sensitive patient data (ePHI).
We ensure data security by implementing end-to-end encryption, VPNs for remote access, and role-based access controls. During the integration of a Sysmex XN-Series hematology analyzer, all HL7 messages containing patient data are transmitted over a secured, isolated network segment. We conduct vulnerability assessments and provide a full data security compliance report upon project completion.
Our guaranteed emergency response for a critical system failure in Port Harcourt is a 30-minute remote diagnostic login and a 24-hour on-site engineer dispatch. For a situation where the RIS is down, preventing a Philips Ingenia 1.5T MRI from receiving patient worklists, our Level 1 support immediately initiates remote troubleshooting. If unresolved, a field engineer is dispatched from our regional hub.
Choose a partner with proven experience integrating the specific equipment you use, like GE Healthcare or Siemens Healthineers systems. Verify their engineers' certifications and ask for case studies from Nigerian hospitals similar to yours, such as Reddington or Lagoon Hospital. A reliable partner provides a detailed SOW, transparent pricing, and robust post-integration support with a clear SLA.
A Statement of Work (SOW) details the project scope, deliverables, timelines, costs, and responsibilities. For integrating a new ultrasound machine like the GE Logiq E10 into your EMR, the SOW would specify the exact DICOM services to be configured (e.g., Modality Worklist, Storage), network port requirements, user training sessions, and the final acceptance testing criteria that must be met.
Yes, you can finance large-scale integration projects through specialized asset financing providers like Franance, which offer flexible payment plans. This allows you to spread the cost of a multi-million Naira project over 24-48 months, preserving your capital for other operational needs. This financing covers all hardware, software licenses, and professional service fees for the entire project.
Outsourcing is generally better for specialized IT integration, as it provides access to certified experts without the high cost of full-time staff. An in-house team may handle basic network issues, but integrating a complex system like a Siemens Artis zee angiography system requires specific vendor training and experience. Outsourcing ensures the project is done correctly and supported by a binding SLA.
We provide comprehensive, role-based training tailored to different user groups, including radiologists, lab technicians, and administrative staff. After integrating a Carestream PACS, we conduct separate sessions for radiologists on advanced viewing tools and for referrers on accessing images. We also offer 'train-the-trainer' programs and provide user manuals and quick-reference guides for ongoing support.
Medical IT systems must comply with data privacy standards and equipment regulations from bodies like SON (Standards Organisation of Nigeria). While Nigeria does not have a specific HIPAA equivalent yet, adhering to global best practices for protecting electronic patient health information (ePHI) is critical. For radiation-emitting devices like a Varian TrueBeam, NNRA (Nigerian Nuclear Regulatory Authority) guidelines for data logging and safety must also be met.
Integrating a single bidirectional lab analyzer typically takes 3 to 5 business days. This involves installing an interface cable, configuring the analyzer's communication protocol (e.g., ASTM or HL7) to match the LIS, like connecting a Horiba Yumizen H500. We then test the full cycle of order download and result upload with sample data before going live.
We offer tiered post-integration support packages, including a standard 90-day warranty and optional annual support contracts (AMCs/CMCs). Our support includes a dedicated helpdesk, remote monitoring of system interfaces, and scheduled preventive maintenance. For a critical RIS/PACS environment, we provide 24/7 remote support to ensure maximum uptime for your diagnostic imaging workflow.
Yes, we provide nationwide support with engineering teams based in major commercial hubs like Lagos, Abuja, and Port Harcourt. This allows us to offer a unified SLA across all your branches, ensuring consistent service quality. For a multi-site deployment of an EMR, our centralized project management team coordinates all on-site activities, from network assessment in Kano to user training in Lagos.
We manage legacy data migration using a phased approach, starting with a data quality assessment. We use ETL (Extract, Transform, Load) tools to map and transfer critical patient demographic and clinical data from your old system to the new EMR. For instance, migrating from a custom-built database to a system like Med-e-Tel requires careful validation to ensure data integrity is maintained throughout the process.
The most common failure points are inadequate network infrastructure, lack of clear workflow definition before starting, and poor user adoption due to insufficient training. A project to connect a Philips IntelliVue patient monitoring system can fail if the hospital's Wi-Fi network cannot handle the constant data stream. A thorough pre-integration site survey and stakeholder engagement are crucial to prevent these issues.
Yes, we can supply, install, and configure all necessary hardware as part of a turnkey integration project. This includes DICOM-compliant servers for a new PACS, network switches with the required port density, and medical-grade workstations for clinical review. We specify hardware from trusted brands like HP, Dell, and Cisco to ensure reliability and compatibility with medical software applications.
Pricing for a bundled integration is based on the number of users, data volume, and the quantity and type of modalities or analyzers to be connected. A 100-bed hospital will have a different price point than a 300-bed facility. We provide a consolidated quote that includes software licensing, all professional integration services, and a multi-year support plan, often offering a 10-15% discount compared to sourcing each component separately.
DICOM (Digital Imaging and Communications in Medicine) conformance is a statement from a manufacturer specifying which DICOM services their device supports. It's crucial because it guarantees that a new GE Voluson ultrasound can successfully send images (DICOM Store) and retrieve patient lists (DICOM Modality Worklist) from your existing multi-vendor PACS. We always review DICOM conformance statements before starting any imaging integration project.
Yes, we can integrate your billing system with a new HMS to automate the billing process. This involves creating an interface that pushes service charges from the HMS—like a lab test ordered for a patient—directly to the billing module. This reduces manual entry errors and revenue leakage. The integration requires API access to both systems and typically takes 2-3 weeks to develop and test.
An interface engine is a middleware solution that manages and translates data between different healthcare systems that speak different 'languages' (e.g., HL7, ASTM, DICOM). You need one if you have more than 3-4 systems to connect, as it simplifies management. Instead of building point-to-point connections, each system (like your LIS, RIS, and EMR) connects to the engine, which handles all data routing and translation.
We assign a dedicated project manager who serves as your single point of contact. Communication is managed through weekly progress meetings, detailed project plans using tools like MS Project, and regular status reports. For a major integration like a new Elekta linear accelerator, the project manager coordinates with your biomedical engineers, IT staff, and clinical teams to ensure a smooth and transparent process.
Standard payment terms are typically 50% upfront to commence the project, 40% upon successful system go-live, and 10% after a 30-day post-implementation support period. For larger projects, we can work with financing partners like Franance to create a milestone-based payment schedule or a monthly plan that aligns with your hospital's budget and cash flow.
Yes, many modern systems can be designed to work in an offline or low-bandwidth mode. The EMR can run on a local server within your hospital, allowing clinicians to access patient data even if the internet is down. Data from devices like a Schiller Cardiovit AT-102 ECG machine is stored locally first. The system then syncs with any cloud-based components once connectivity is restored, ensuring uninterrupted operations.
At project completion, we provide a comprehensive handover package. This includes network diagrams, system configuration documents, administrator and user manuals, a full record of acceptance testing results, and an emergency support contact list. For a PACS integration, this would also include a DICOM configuration summary for each connected modality, such as your Hologic Selenia mammography unit.
We design scalable solutions by using enterprise-grade servers, virtualized environments, and network architecture that can handle future growth. When deploying a PACS for a 50-bed hospital, we provision a server and storage solution that can support a 50% increase in data volume over three years without requiring a major hardware overhaul. This ensures your initial investment remains viable as you add more modalities or departments.