6 Warning Signs That It’s Time to Upgrade Your Diagnostic Equipment

Busy practice managers or administrators have multiple issues that compete for their attention every day. It may seem to an outsider that successful administrators have developed a “sixth-sense” that enables them to anticipate issues that may have a negative impact on the bottom line and take action to mitigate those issues before cash flow suffers. The reality is that successful practice managers have learned the warning signs for all types of potential problems and react to those warning signs quickly.

When it comes to diagnostic imaging equipment, there are some clear signs that it is time to upgrade:

1) Patient Complaints

Experienced administrators have learned to listen to their customers. If patients are complaining they have to wait a long time for diagnostic testing, or they don’t like the fact they have to travel to another facility or deal with another provider to get the test results needed for their treatment, it could be a sign you need more diagnostic imaging equipment on site.

2)  Referrals Dropping

If other healthcare providers are not sending their patients to you for diagnostic imaging tests, you’ll want to investigate what’s going on. It could be that the image quality your current equipment provides just isn’t good enough. Time for an upgrade.

3) Competitive Edge Needed

Are you the only provider in town who can provide a certain diagnostic test? Would you like to be? Choosing the right refurbished diagnostic imaging equipment makes it possible.

4) Performance & Appearance of Current Equipment Substandard

Diagnostic imaging equipment needs to function flawlessly to satisfy clinicians. It also needs to look good to reassure patients that their healthcare concerns are being treated professionally and with respect.

5) Staff Complaints

If you’re hearing from your physicians, clinicians, and staff that diagnostic testing isn’t happening as quickly as it needs to, or that the images they’re getting aren’t of consistently high quality, it’s time to consider an upgrade or adding additional diagnostic imaging equipment to your practice.

6) Staff Retention Concerns

Recruiting and training new technicians on a regular basis is a large and often underestimated expense. If you’re experiencing high turnover, it can be extremely eye-opening to delve into the causes. Being forced to work with faulty, older diagnostic imaging equipment is extremely frustrating, as is a constant backlog of patients who are irritated because they had to wait for the test. Upgrading equipment can make the work environment better and help with staff retention rates.

If one or more of these signs are occurring in your clinic, it may be time to upgrade your diagnostic equipment. The next step is to implement the solution that will address the issue both financially and operationally.

If you think this may be the case for your practice, but you are also concerned about the financial commitment an upgrade of this size would be, consider renting rather than purchasing. Renting makes solid business sense in most cases:

• Operating expense vs. a capital expenditure with a minimal cash outlay, no financing fees, and the rental fees are tax deductible
• No long-term obligations
• Wide selection of equipment to choose from
• You get to “try before you buy” to ensure that your clinicians and techs like the equipment and that it meets the needs of your practice
• You get to meet or increase your diagnostic imaging capacity and increase revenue while decreasing wait times for your patients.

Interested in learning more about how renting your diagnostic imaging equipment can help your facility increase revenue and reduce your operating costs? Our responsive, flexible, responsible and economical approach to c-arm rentals could be the right approach. Download our whitepaper or call us at  877-904-1904 to see how Bluestone Diagnostics can put our 20 years of c-arm rental experience to work for you!