Expert support for SAP replacement and cloud operations

We live in exciting times: structural change is underway in hospitals, and the market for hospital information systems (HIS) is also in flux. What does this mean for Meierhofer AG, one of the HIS market leaders in German-speaking countries?

On the one hand, we see a hospital landscape that is still struggling with change. At the same time, there is an enormous need for renewal due to the discontinuation of important SAP solutions on the HIS side. In parallel, regulatory requirements are also increasing – which is an enormous challenge not only for hospitals but also for HIS manufacturers. For us at Meierhofer AG, this is a phase in which we can play to our strengths: over 40 years of market experience, a modular HIS that covers a wide range of requirements, and a deep understanding of clinical processes. We not only accompany hospitals through this change – we help them to actively shape it and advise them on how to proceed. Today, it is no longer enough to simply provide IT systems. Hospitals need a partner who understands the market holistically and has a firm grasp of the complex regulatory requirements. This is precisely where our focus lies: we support our customers throughout the entire process – from successful implementation to stability and reliable operation to the continuous development of their solutions.

What is the role of the HIS in a hospital landscape that is set to become more intersectoral? Will it remain the central system that it has been for so long?

The HIS will evolve into a highly orchestrated and process-controlled instrument, moving away from pure documentation. Of course, it could be said that clinical data repositories are increasingly making data available. But the HIS will not become redundant. It is precisely the intersectoral scenarios that give the ‘primary systems’, as they are so nicely called, enormous importance, both in terms of processes and billing.

Many hospitals currently need to replace their SAP systems. In addition to established companies from Germany, international players and new providers are champing at the bit. What should hospitals look out for? And how can Meierhofer AG help?

The replacement of SAP IS-H will be a key topic at DMEA. Our message is: we have a wealth of experience with SAP products and can provide comprehensive support for the transition away from SAP. This applies to IS-H and also to S/4Hana, for example. In addition to replacing IS-H, we also offer a complete migration to our M-KIS, which maps all clinical processes and supports all administrative processes that a hospital needs today and in the future, right through to billing. We have already proven that we can do this. Since autumn 2024, we have been using our newly developed, SaaS-enabled solution for patient management and billing productively with several customers.

As far as new providers are concerned, it depends a little on how willing a hospital is to experiment. We recommend ensuring that the provider can offer a powerful, user-friendly system that actually meets the requirements – in real life, not just on PowerPoint slides. And, of course, the regulatory requirements should be fully implemented. Otherwise, you run the risk of having to purchase additional items. If completeness is important, then the decision is unlikely to be experimental. What we would advise against in any case is relying on the IS-H migration issue to resolve itself. Active action is required here. Because the IS-H replacement is more than just an IT migration. It is a strategic process and operational decision. Patient management and billing are relevant to operations and revenue. The core processes must run smoothly. The change is an opportunity to work with the hospitals to rethink and optimise processes and design them directly from the perspective of care provision. We are consciously taking the HIS-integrated approach.

Politically, DMEA will be dominated by the Federal Ministry of Health's new digital strategy, among other things. This strategy strongly emphasises the importance of telematics infrastructure (TI) and electronic patient records (ePA). Are your solutions prepared for this?

We have always been one of the first to connect to TI in the hospital sector, and that remains the case. TI connectivity is relevant for hospitals, not least for cross-facility processes. As a company with extensive experience with hospital chains and hospital networks, we can provide sound advice in this area. We also offer TI-supporting solutions, which will be on display at DMEA. We see the whole topic of cross-sector communication with and without TI as our responsibility, not least because no one else is addressing it. The KBV focuses on outpatient processes, the DKG on inpatient processes. The area in between is left untouched. We can and want to tackle this area of responsibility.

A second prominent topic in the digital strategy is artificial intelligence (AI). Where are Meierhofer solutions already using AI today?

We have been working with structured data and clinical algorithms for a long time. Current AI topics related to large language models are patient summaries and doctor's letters. There is strong demand for this, and we will also be demonstrating it at DMEA. Our AI-supported chatbot helps to control modules and answer questions – like a smart assistant in everyday clinical practice. We support administrative processes, for example, with OCR document scanning and automated derivations. Our goal is clear: to save nursing and medical staff time by reducing routine and documentation tasks. The time saved should directly benefit patients. To this end, we offer a broad portfolio of AI-supported solutions. Overall, there is still a lot of momentum in the field of AI, at least in part because approval procedures are also involved.

Back to Meierhofer AG's core product: How do you ensure that your M-KIS hospital information system remains future-proof?

There are three key areas in which we are further developing our M-KIS: operation, security and interoperability. There is increasing demand for cloud-based operation of HIS systems or parts thereof. Technologically, our product is ready for this. M-KIS is container-based and SaaS-enabled. Our customers are already noticing the benefits of downtime-free updates for individual solutions in their operations. When it comes to implementation, it is no longer just a question of classic managed service implementations based on a local cloud, but increasingly also of operation with hyperscalers. One of the advantages of cloud-based architectures is that security requirements and maximum availability can be better implemented. Here, we rely on the required zero-trust security concepts for reliability and data protection. In terms of interoperability, we are showcasing our new interoperability platform at DMEA, which is firmly anchored in the M-KIS architecture and offers customers considerable scope for connecting external systems. Our approach is open and interoperable, but we also ensure that the end result is a functioning ecosystem.