Innovation In Healthcare Technology Changing the Game For Hospitals And Healthcare Centers

Innovation in healthcare technology has changed the rules of the game for hospitals and healthcare centers. It has and continues to do so.

As in other industries, healthcare will be disrupted by advancements in technology like telemedicine and virtualized care programs, which are already rising in popularity with patients.

But how will it impact brick-and-mortar space? Panelists at the recent RealShare Healthcare conference here in Scottsdale, AZ, said that telemedicine will not replace the need for office visits. Panelist say it will not take away from the real estate.

What it will do is create efficiency” according to Justin Brasell, EVP of healthcare advisory services at Transwestern. “We are missing a lot of people due to inefficiencies. We will continue to see more admissions and I think telehealth is also a differentiator.”

He pointed out that when you are a physician that offers telehealth, it is about hook/add for your patient to come back.

“Telehealth will continue to drive occupancy and real estate but it will change what that real estate looks like. It is a great compliment to real estate and supercharge,” Brasell said.

Brasell is hyper focused on standardizing the physician clinic and piping in fiber for additional technology in the space.

“The future is about standardization and flexibility within the new construction developments,” Brasell said.

Jake Dinner, SVP of development at PMB said that if you take a step back from the layout of the space, the strategy behind the clinics really get into the data and determining the right size for the building, what are the service lines and when are they going to come available etc. so you can plan for future growth.

“We try to use data as much as possible. We work with clinical analysts to determine what needs to go into the building paired with telehealth,” Dinner said. “It is about being strategy based.,”

When asked about risk in telemedicine, Dinner doesn’t see the risk in it and says health systems mitigate risk as much as they can.

“The biggest thing with the evolution of telehealth will be education of the providers,” Dinner said. “The place healthcare technology will be most vulnerable will be the patient data for healthcare systems, which are 200 times more likely to get hacked than any other industry. There has been a huge influx in cyber protection and that impacts real estate because it significantly impacts their bottom line and they are looking to the real estate side to help with that.”

 

Soure: GlobeSt

Diagnosing The Net-Lease Medical Sector

What do dialysis clinics, urgent care locations, and dental offices have in common?

They are often net lease tenants and together these types of tenants make up the net lease medical sector.

Calkain’s just-releasedNet Lease Report: Medical Sector notes that net lease medical properties can prove to be viable investments, thanks to the following fundamentals.

In-Place Tenants

The main appeal of a net lease medical property is the tenants, which funnel capital into extensive space buildouts and industry-specific equipment. Furthermore, a net lease medical tenant is less likely to up and relocate, as moving X-ray machines, dental equipment and surgical suites can be a costly challenge.

In-Person Healthcare Delivery

Even with telemedicine and virtual healthcare becoming important tools, medical care continues to flourish through face-to-face interaction. The in-person, real-time relationship between patient and physician is difficult to replicate via the internet, meaning a continued need for physical space. Additionally, medical tenants set up shop in specific areas, based on proximity to target populations and lack of competition.

Financial Strength

Net lease medical tenants range from solo dental practices to regional stand-alone urgent care/emergency centers to national specialty clinics. Another aspect tying these businesses together is they are, for the most part, strong financially. A consistent revenue stream adds to the appeal of a net lease medical property.

As with any kind of investment, there are downsides. The net lease medical sector is no exception, and investors need to keep in mind the following.

Empty Space

As mentioned above, relocation is less likely to take place, but this doesn’t mean that it won’t happen. If a healthcare tenant decides not to renew a lease, backfilling the property can be difficult and tenant improvements to convert to general retail purposes can be costly.

Shifting Dynamics

Neighbors Legacy Holdings Inc., which owned and operated Neighbors Emergency Centers, filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection in summer 2018. The year before, six urgent care centers in Southern California filed for bankruptcy protection. Increased competition, changing third-party payer conditions, and increasing overhead costs created financial difficulties for these and other companies. The bankruptcy process can kill a net lease investor’s revenue stream until a judge approves a reorganization plan.

Certainly, there are risks when it comes to owning a net lease medical property and due diligence is essential. The future is bright for the sector.  With advances in medicine, people are living longer and this creates a greater need for healthcare services. The growing demand could push net leased medical facilities to full capacity and lead to a need for additional medical offices, specialty clinics, and urgent care locations. As such, market fundamentals and increasing demand can make medical-sector properties attractive to a net lease property owner.

 

Source: GlobeSt.

$3B Med Tech Company Takes Its Global Headquarters To Dallas

Medical technology giant DJO Global is relocating its headquarters from San Diego to Dallas early next year.

North Texas will serve as the company’s global headquarters and include a customer experience center and a facility that fosters collaboration, according to a press release. DJO was purchased by Maryland-based Colfax Corp. in November of this year for $3.15 billion.

In addition to the relocating employees, the company says will create hundreds of jobs in the Dallas area including a new distribution center in Fort Worth, which opened a few months ago and has 200 employees. DJO creates braces, joints, inserts and more used by orthopedic surgeons, primary care physicians, pain management specialists, physical therapists, podiatrists, chiropractors, athletic trainers and other healthcare professionals, who use them for injury prevention and and physical therapy.

“We made the strategic decision to move our headquarters to Dallas to expand our presence into a market with a strong and larger pool of talent, gain greater and more efficient customer access and take advantage of what we believe is a better corporate environment for our company as we grow,” said Brady Shirley, DJO’s President and Chief Executive Officer via release. “At the same time, we felt it was important to continue the 40-year legacy of DonJoy in Southern California by continuing to build our Bracing business in Carlsbad.”

 

“This move is a key component of a multi-phase facility optimization strategy that DJO embarked on earlier in the year to enhance the look and feel of many of our offices, bring teams together and remove unneeded workspace in our U.S. locations,” said Jeanine Kestler, Executive Vice President and Chief Human Resources Officer for DJO via release. “We are excited to become one of the leading medical device companies headquartered in Dallas and an active member of the community!”

 

Source: Healthcare Magazine