In another megatrend, with administrators replacing directors of radiology as the purchase decision-makers, mobile coach companies report that the time it takes to finalize a deal has lengthened. The consolidation of health care organizations and introduction of purchasing groups contribute to this protraction.

"We used to get calls where people needed a mobile right away, say 14 to 18 months ago. Today they are planning better, putting it into a budget for the future. We are seeing more of that when asked to provide a proposal for interim rental," Holzberg said.


As with many services today, mobiles face strong expectations from customers. "You have to meet better than average uptime," Webb said. "In a tight market people have higher expectations, higher demands for good quality response, service, equipment, and coaches."

Silver Linings

For all the business challenges, the bottom line remains: mobile medical units are an inexpensive alternative to in-house equipment. That fact and the growing national pressure to contain health care costs, provide a reason to be optimistic for the experts in this field.

"Our business has remained steady. This is because there are shorter contract periods and financing is becoming an obstacle for a lot of facilities," noted Kurt Bringolf, VP of service, Eclipse Medical Imaging, Vacaville, Calif. "Renting or leasing a mobile can be a better option for those with financing issues as opposed to the cost of installing a fixed system."

The economy cuts both ways. "Hospitals were able to get easy credit to buy equipment which displaced the need for mobile MR services," said Kyle Hollis, owner of ANAMED, Lebanon, Tenn. "I would say things will be good for mobiles over the next few years. Hospitals have to second-guess being able to purchase a system. What I have seen is a resurgence of places wanting mobiles and that market will probably pick up."

"Business has remained steady for quite some time and is slowly but surely increasing and will continue to increase within the next few months," said Mona Abboud, vice president, Monarch Medical, Staten Island, NY.

Even if U.S. business is iffy, international opportunities are definitely growing fast. "We have decided to increase concentration in our formerly strong international markets and have increased the ratio of international sales to nearly 50 percent," Smith said.

All this will serve to keep mobile moving in the right direction.

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DOTmed Registered Mobile Service Provider Companies

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