ECRI Institute announces CapitalNavigator, a new capital budgeting service that expedites the decision-making process for planning medical technology purchases and projects at hospitals and health systems.

ECRI Institute’s technology experts examine capital requests, participate in budget committee meetings, and offer unbiased insights and recommendations, enabling hospital leaders to prioritize and justify costly projects based on clinical and strategic objectives.

“Health systems are financially strapped, so they’re constantly trying to spend less and get more for each department. Our technical expertise and independent judgment give hospital leaders confidence to do that, especially when making contentious decisions on expensive medical technology requests,” says Thomas E. Skorup, MBA, FACHE, vice president, Applied Solutions Group.

CapitalNavigator budget reviews address clinical appropriateness and effectiveness, implementation needs, return on investment, standard of care and regulatory issues, obsolescence, and industry trends.

Working with a 17-hospital health system, ECRI Institute and hospital leaders achieved millions in savings. With ECRI Institute’s expert insights, the organization saved more than $600,000 by choosing a single-plane electrophysiology lab over a bi-plane lab. It also saved $2 million by delaying investment in a second surgical robot, and more than $3 million by avoiding investment in a CyberKnife system.

What’s more, CapitalNavigator clients receive a customized decision-support model preloaded with their capital budget requests on ECRI Institute’s proprietary TruVu™ platform. The interactive visualization tool makes it possible to weigh variables, blind requests, and play out “if/then” scenarios to see the impact of budget decisions.