Why Health Systems Should Build Their Own Digital Health App

The marketplace is flooded with digital health and mobile health applications. But health systems looking to outsource app development might be surpirsed at how simple it is to build their own app in-house.

Raj Das, chief customer officer at VLink, a global IT and strategic workforce solution provider, told Inside Digital Health™ at Expo.Health in Boston, that the top health system executives must be committed to building their apps, and should be clear about what they want in the app before kicking off the building process.

“That is something that no technology or mobile app company can really provide, because that is inherent in what you want to do with the app,” he said.

Das added that executives should think carefully about what data they want to track using the app, what outcomes the executive team wants and how the app differentiates from others on the market.

The entry barrier for building an app, rather than buying one, is not too high. It is also not too expensive to create one, Das said. It’s easy to develop, maintain and customize your own app.

Das said that building an app is more of a business challenge than a technology challenge. “As a business, the healthcare company should know what it wants to get out of the wellness app or any mobile app,” he said.

Clarity and direction from the executive team is a large factor. But a business customizing its app to differentiate itself in the marketplace is truly the most important reason to build an app rather than buy one, Das said.

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