Facts About Renting Medical Equipment

By Lila Bryant


Medical facilities are faced with one of the most expensive and somehow sophisticated equipment investments. In order to have a significant impact on their clients, individuals and institutions that are engaged in practicing medical services are faced with the need of procuring the latest and state of the art equipment. However, with all this investment, the very tools are quickly rendered obsolete by the passage of time and the ever changing technology. It is therefore important and necessary to thoroughly analyze each and every investment decision in order to realize the most economical use of the scarce financial resources. This particularly entails a close comparison between making a purchase and renting medical equipment.

One can rent a wide variety of these instruments. Some of the tools you can rent include surgical implements, MRI machines, EMR software, computers, X-ray and ultrasound machines, imaging and diagnostic instruments, surgery tables among others. However, before embarking on this agreement, it is important to consider some vital factors, as illustrated below.

First and foremost, closely analyze the financial implications of both a buy and rent decision. This is the surest way to enhance the most effective financial decision. It entails the prices of the concerned products across various major manufacturers and dealers while comparing with lease quotes from the medical leasing companies.

A good supply of information is important for a complete financial analysis. You should therefore access the most vital and pertinent financial information before embarking on the analysis. The data will be helpful in assessing the feasibility of the particular project, which can only be arrived at by estimating the cash flow of the investment. The incremental cash flow denotes the additional expenses and revenues accruing from the project. It is from this cash flow that one can know how a particular project will better the performance of the business, which is contrary to a rather unidirectional approach as to whether a particular project will generate profit on its own.

Although many businesses usually stop here, this should not be the case. You should further evaluate the data with other such analyses as break even, payback value and net present value. The long term and short term implications of a given investment can only be evidenced through this evaluation, including the payback period.

However, the cost of renting depends to a great extent on the rate of the lease and the periodic payments. As such, carry out and evaluation of the factors affecting the periodic payments and the lease rate. For example, the period of the lease has a profound impact on the terms and the amount of charges associated. Clearly spell out the duration of your lease.

Before renting, one should also consider the frequency of service (repair) and the type of the lease (capital or operating lease). For maintenance, consider the service schedule; the number of times and how convenient it is. Does it allow on-site servicing or must it be taken in for repair? Capital leases (with capital allowances and residual ownership) are more expensive compared to operating leases (are pure rental agreements).

Simply put, the decision process whether to rent or buy a medical equipment relies more on ascertaining which option will be more beneficial to your practice; the bottom line; evaluate how the investment fits with your general business plan, compare it to alternative opportunities in your practice and determine whether it will be profitable on its own while improving the present and future overall financial performance of your practice.




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