As the healthcare landscape rapidly evolves, hospitals face a critical decision: Should they make (build your own) or buy virtual nursing services? This choice hinges on thoroughly analyzing various factors, including cost, expertise, customization, scalability, and alignment with strategic goals. Below, we outline a structured approach to help guide your decision-making process. 

Assess Organizational Needs and Goals
Begin by evaluating your hospital‘s specific needs and goals concerning virtual nursing. Consider your patient population, clinical specialties, and care delivery models. Take stock of your existing staff, leadership, technological infrastructure, and broader strategic objectives. Understanding these elements is crucial to determining the best fit for your virtual nursing services. 

Evaluate Available Solutions
Research the virtual nursing solutions offered by external vendors. Analyze features, functionalities, outcomes and pricing models and perform referral checks. This “trust but verify” step is essential in identifying solutions that align with your hospital’s requirements. Engaging with current users can provide valuable insights into each option’s effectiveness and reliability. 

Consider Cost and Budgetary Constraints
The financial implications of building versus buying a virtual nursing solution may be significant. When evaluating costs, consider the total cost of ownership, which includes upfront costs, licensing fees, ongoing maintenance, and potential training costs for staff. A thorough understanding of these financial commitments will help you assess the viability of each option. 

Assess Internal Expertise and Resources
Evaluate the expertise and resources available within your hospital. Determine whether your team has the leadership, technical knowledge, staffing, and infrastructure to develop and maintain an in-house virtual nursing model. If your resources are lacking, partnering with an external vendor may provide a more predictable and efficient path forward, or you may need to strategize to strengthen your internal capabilities. 

Consider Strategic Alignment
Assess how each option aligns with your hospital’s strategic, economic, and long-term goals. Whether you buy or build, ensure that your approach supports broader organizational priorities such as innovation, outcomes, and competitive differentiation. Strategic alignment ensures that your virtual nursing solution is not just a temporary fix but a sustainable program well into the future. 

Perform Cost-Benefit Analysis
Conduct a multi-modal, comprehensive cost-benefit analysis to weigh the financial pros and cons of buying versus building. Consider not only immediate costs but also long-term benefits and potential challenges of each approach. This analysis will provide a clearer picture of which option best aligns with your hospital’s overall strategy. 

Conclusion
Deciding whether to make or buy a virtual nursing solution is a complex process that requires careful consideration of multiple factors. There are some very good external solutions as well as some amazing ways to build your own program. By systematically evaluating your hospital’s needs, resources, and strategic goals, you can make an informed decision that supports your organization’s mission, is respectful of budgets, and enhances patient care. Ultimately, whether you opt for an external vendor or develop an in-house model, the goal is to implement a virtual nursing system that is efficient, effective, and sustainable in the long term. 

Navigating this decision with a structured approach will ensure that your virtual nursing model meets immediate challenges and positions your hospital for future success.