What is custom healthcare software development?

This post is a quick overview of an Abto Software blog article.

From administration to accounting, the modern-day healthcare industry is leveraging unmatched productivity. The reason – more and more leaders are going for custom software development.

EHR and EMR solutions, HIE and RPM systems, telehealth platforms, patient portals – the tools are evolving. Business leaders approach custom software development and harness expanded accessibility and reach, efficiency, performance, and scalability.

The terminology

The choice between custom and off-the-shelf software solutions is an ongoing debate among entrepreneurs. Key factors include budget and deadlines, required functionality, integration capabilities, as well as scalability are making the decision even harder.

But first things first, let’s dive deeper into the concepts:

• Bespoke solutions are designed to meet business-specific requirements, both functional and technical
• Commercial solutions are designed to provide generic features, thus meeting common requirements, no matter the industry – healthcare, retail, finance, construction, and others

Today’s trends

The healthcare IT landscape has experienced significant expansion both during and following the pandemic. With lockdowns and restrictions that limited in-person consultations, digital services have surged in response – this shift towards normalizing virtual consultations is gaining more traction and reshaping conventional care.

The numbers are evident:

• The healthcare IT market is estimated at impressive $358.5 billion in 2024
• The global EHR market is forecast to increase by striking $54.7 billion in 2024-2028

Custom healthcare software development: essential features

Electronic health records systems

Electronic health record software is critical to ensure data-driven insights, accurate assessment, and more. Custom-built applications are integrated to accelerate data exchange between organizations and departments. That means efficiently managing coordination details, multi-provider records, and other healthcare documents. And this, in return, significantly affects everyday operations.

But let’s get into more detail.

Off-the-shelf features typically include:

• Patient history
• Patient demographics
• Order entry
• Results management
• Immunization records
• Medication management
• Manual documentation
• Manual billing and coding
• Appointment scheduling
• Appointment reminders

Custom functionality might comprise:

• Data mining
• Predictive analytics
• Image analysis
• Personalized treatment
• Fraud detection
• Risk stratification
• Automated documentation
• Automated coding and billing
• Disease detection
• Genomic analysis

Electronic medical records systems

Electronic medical record software is important to ensure care consistency and facilitate patient outcomes. Custom-designed applications are implemented to streamline single-provider documentation and templates. That means better organized administrative details, patient progress, and other intra-practice information. And, naturally, that might considerably influence everyday workflows.

Going beyond commercial features, what functionality might drive greater performance?

Off-the-shelf features typically include:

• Clinical summaries
• Diagnosis coding
• Electronic charting
• Progress notes
• Lab results
• Radiology reports
• Care coordination
• Maintenance reminders
• Visit documentation
• Prescription management

Custom functionality might comprise:

• Data harmonization
• Predictive modeling
• Real-time alerts
• Nursing assistants
• Automated triage
• Symptom checking
• Smart scheduling
• Data-driven pathways
• Intelligent Workflow Optimization
• Dynamic Protocol Management

Health information exchange (HIE)

Health information exchange systems are programs that simplify data transmission between organizations. They include patient demographics, medical history, diagnoses, treatments, prescribed medications, and more, heavily impacting healthcare delivery.

A custom HIE solution might include on-demand functionality to optimize the experience, for example:

• Data access controls
• Data analytics dashboards
• Tailored data-sharing protocols
• Localized language support
• Integration with community programs
• Integration with non-traditional providers
• Custom patient identity management
• Customizable patient consent management
• Bespoke interfaces
• Personalized alerts and notifications

Remote patient monitoring (RPM)

Remote patient monitoring systems are applications that facilitate patient management even from a distance. They include blood pressure, physical activity, body temperature, sleep patterns, and other health indicators, all measured by personal medical devices.

A custom RPM solution might include

• Advanced encryption and security
• Real-time streaming and alerts
• Support for low-bandwidth environments
• Integration with non-standard devices
• Custom reporting and analytics
• Custom billing and reimbursement
• Multi-language support
• Predictive analytics
• Customized app interfaces
• Flexible escalation protocols

Custom healthcare software development: key benefits

Data accuracy

One factor you should definitely consider before investing – data accuracy and consistency across processes.

Data accuracy is critical to optimize health assessment, diagnosis, treatment, and even surgical procedures. Entry forms, validation rules, data syncing and retrieval, error detection, role-based access, training modules – by integrating custom-designed applications, you minimize potential discrepancy.

Data analytics

Another factor you should also take into account before committing – data analytics and integrity.

Data analytics are important for insight-driven decision support, resource allocation, and many other activities. Data visualization, real-time processing, predictive analytics, patient tracking, trend analysis, risk stratification – by implementing custom-tailored programs, you boost overall performance across departments.

Patient engagement

Patient engagement typically involves health education, shared decision-making, feedback, surveys, and more. By choosing custom development, healthcare providers might integrate on-demand functionality, for example, customizable interfaces and dashboards, language translation, and other unique features.

Regulatory compliance

Regulatory compliance is important to eliminate license suspension, fines, penalties, and other legal actions. That’s why custom development is recommended for strategic-thinking healthcare providers and professionals.

Summing up

Abto Software is your trusted partner for custom software development with proven, specialized expertise. Preliminary discovery, requirement documentation, design, engineering, quality assurance, and deployment – our engineers can cover every stage, and that with adherence to acknowledged regulatory standards.

Our services:

• .NET development
• ASP.NET development
• Web app development
• Mobile app development
• Cloud services
• Full-cycle, custom software development