KLAS says: The deployment of PACS technology in U.S. healthcare has penetrated nearly 90 percent of the large hospital and academic medical center market, according to a report from market research firm Research & Markets. Almost all large hospitals with more than 200 beds have invested in a PACS, and some of these organizations are migrating to their second-generation PACS strategy. This emerging trend towards replacement in large hospitals means that the market for net new PACS installations is being isolated primarily to smaller community hospitals.
KLAS monitors two dozen vendors that target the community hospital space as a growth market, and 17 of those vendors are profiled in this report.
(The top five are represented here) With so many choices, healthcare provider organizations have a number of questions they want answered. How do the larger, established imaging vendors that originated in the large hospital market perform in the community hospital space? How do these vendors compare to vendors that originated in the ambulatory or small hospital market? As long-term imaging and enterprise strategies are considered, which vendors are experiencing robust growth and which ones are losing business? Which vendors consistently deliver?
For this research, KLAS conducted interviews at over 600 community hospitals (1-200 beds) regarding the experiences they are having with their PACS vendor.
“KLAS BOTTOM LINES”
Avreo— Avreo successfully markets an integrated, single-database PACS /RIS/dictation product to smaller community hospitals that want to digitize radiology, and backs up the product with a high level of support. With a few dozen organizations live, Avreo's future success will depend on how well they scale to growth demands.
Sectra— Sectra is expanding its client base in community hospitals and larger hospitals due to proven client satisfaction and a physician-friendly application.
Infinitt— Infinitt delivers a capable, integrated system for PACS, RIS, and some advanced visualization features. Clients report healthy business relationships with the vendor and would readily recommend Infinitt to a colleague.
GE IW (Dynamic Imaging)— Centricity IW is a physician-friendly, functional PACS that wins high marks from both clients and those considering IW. The product enjoys tremendous market exposure. There is some anxiety among both Dynamic Imaging and Centricity clients regarding the integration of the two competing product strategies.
DR Systems— DR Systems markets a system built by radiologists for radiologists, and has done so successfully. The Unity PACS is a highly functional system that is easy to use for physicians and technologists. Growth-induced support concerns are cropping up.
