Most software models in the world are licensed. That means that they are owned by their creator or organization, and users purchase the right to use the software. Fees are one time purchases. Each feature upgrades to the software generally require an additional license purchase price, though often it is reduced. That policy does vary from company to company, but you should get the gist. The point is that if you want the latest and greatest version of the software, then you have to pay whatever applicable license fees that the software owner dictates. Software updates are generally scheduled on a routine basis to keep the company profits steady and the software ‘alive.’
SAAS, or Software As A Service, is based on a usage model and not a one time licensing model. You pay a modest fee every month for the usage of the software and/or services. If you want to quit using the software at any time then you can.
This has distinct advantages in Electronic Health Records software. Instead of a large hardware and software investment that could be $50K – $100K initially for the aver two provider practice, you can get started with say $5000 initial outlay and $1500 to $2000 a month for the usage of the software. Your hardware and software costs are reduced also because we provide all the server hardware and software, plus the software for the laptops and desktops which you will purchase to meet your specific office needs.
Let me share with you what I have in my office and you can judge for yourself. We see about 12,000 patient visits a year, have three front office staff each with desktops. We have a PediKey® Kiosk in the foyer for self-service checkin and medical record updating and a older laptop in the lab for the realtime lab instrument connections. My practice manager has a desktop in her office, I and my two nurse practitioners have laptops. There are 5 laptops in the nursing stations to cover nurse phone triage, nurse facilitator, and the nurse attendings for each provider.
My hardware investment excluding the database server, then is for 8 laptops, each about $1300 average, and 4 desktops each about $1300 to $1400 average. My hardware total is about $17,000. I use only and recommend only Macintosh hardware because of its reliability. I get about 6 years use out of a laptop, and 8 years on desktop units in my experience with Macintosh.
When you break that down it comes to about $2,800 per year hardware cost. It further breaks down to about $233 per user per year. I’m basing that on a 6 year lifespan also.
Now what about the SAAS fees? These are assessed by provider, not total users. If you have one provider then it is $1,500 a month. Each provider is $500 more so that two is $2,000, three is $2,500, etc. For a single provider then the yearly cost is $18,000 for the SAAS fees. The first year with hardware outlays is the largest, but then year out for the next 6 years, the cost remains $18,000 a year paid monthly.
That includes ALL software updates and our hardware server and server and client database software usage and ongoing support. I modestly estimate the yearly savings is about $75,000. It could be more.
Our company site, http://www.Pediateq.com, will have the full business end and detail how our management solution integrates PaperCutPro® so that you can get full use of the software… every part of it!
In this world of numerous EHR’s also known as electronic health records, PaperCutPro® stands out. It was the brainchild and creation of me, Ron Smith, MD. I’m an actively practicing Pediatrician with almost 30 years of practice experience. I live and work in Georgia.