Home Forums Discussions Problems Prices of new interfaces

I've just upgraded to the new version, and was pleased to see that AC had added some additional interfaces. However, these are through x-link. Now, I know we can't have everything at no additional cost (businesses don't run too well that way) but we do need to know what the costs are. The new interfaces have a button that says "Learn More" at which point, if you click on it, it says "Try it for free."

Can the expected cost of implementing the interface be given before we go through the trouble of actually implementing it?

Wayne

Amen.

Our local hospital is finally starting to move on a hospital wide EHR and info management system. They anticipate "supporting" local docs in installing and running an office EHR that will interface w/ their system. As a happy AC user, I would prefer an interface to their new monster (probably Meditech), rather that have to change to their preferred package (eClinicalworks, IDX, or Cerner)/

If AC offers interfaces that work well at reasonable prices, I would be less tempted to switch to a different EHR, and will have an easier time convincing my peers to adopt AC rather than the hospital's big money choice.

I think this has as much to do with the X-Link folks (not always the easiest people to get in touch with or to go get answers out of) as much as anything else. Right now they write stuff that connects many different EMR's with a number of PM modules. As of right now they don't make a linking software that talks EMR to EMR or PM to PM and I certainly don't know of who else might. One lady I spoke with there who knows Jon, said that such a product is probably a year and a half down the road...Who knows. I wanted to try and link up and/or export our old charts from our old EMR and into our AC. Also, I wanted a solution for a small billing company to be able to send their data back and forth to multiple different small offices, so the biller could have the program of their choice, but could still service any number of small Med office on various programs that they picked.

But this is the basic problem in this industry that others took care of up front. I used to work in theater and TV and a single agreed upon standard is the key. We had 525 lines, interlaced at 29.97 frames per second, tough that's it. That's why HD took so long also. There was alot of bickering back and forth, but until there was ONE standard, nothing else was going to happen. Now there's a standard and now everyone can start designing and building around that standard. We in medicine need to start insisting upon products that are easier, cheaper, and more universal. Like I keep telling everyone of my vendors, like the labs, you want my business then you need to deal with AC, period. :idea:

But people see doctors and the medical field as an endless source to their own (not ours) money. We are a trough for these designers and vendors to feed at. So what if starving small practices waste money, trying and throwing out multiple bad experiments on EMR's. So what that half the reason for EMR's in the first place was for the portability and continuity of everyone's healthrecords and that such a goal can never be realized, that's OK, everyone else made lots of money on it. Like the cost of MidMark Ritter, ECG's and their other gear. We supply half the hardware and operating system for these devices, but the new ones that work with EMR's are 2 to 4 times the price of the old ones. Yet no carrier pays extra for PC and software based ECG's that attach themselves to the pt's chart. Can you say P4P...today's fee schedule will be the top shelf and then if you don't hit all the marks (were they valid measures to begin with, who get to pick these targets, and with what biases in mind???) it'll just be downhill from there. People need to draw a line in the sand, and say "we fall back no more". At $25 to $35 an ECG, It'll take us years as a solo office to pay off our two devices. And now Jon as the AC developer needs to recoup his development and support costs, so of course he needs to honestly charge us all a few bucks. I was kind of giving one of my MidMark rep a piece of my mind today. He told me that Jon's prices were actually very good (& I believe this... fortunately, unfortunately) and that most EMR vendors were charging much more for such stuff!!! God forbid the primary care Doc should actually make a few bucks on the services they render.....but MidMark got paid now didn't they.

Here's my new saying that I'd like you all to pass along, like IKE...."Beware of the Medical Industrialised Complex". It's a shame, but it's too true...Sorry for the rant... :evil:
Paul

You can drill into the information on AC3 price of the x-link interface for various connections. It appears that AC is listing a price of $1500 for licensed AC users to acquire the AC side of the X-link interface for the PMs.

The AC free trial does not include giving you a free trial of the 'other side' of the interface, i.e. one of the listed PM. You either need to already be an owner of one of these PM, negotiate a free trial with your PM vendor or buy one on the chance it will work.

If it does not work, I think chances are that Jon and AC will eventually get it working.

Geoff