The $1 million question: Where’s my mobile ROI?
How shared mobile programs outperform 1:1 and BYOD models in cost, compliance, and clinical efficiency.
Hospitals are being squeezed from every angle: rising patient care demands, clinician shortages, escalating cyber threats, and shrinking budgets. For under-resourced hospitals, the stakes are even higher. When every dollar must stretch further, technology investments can’t just promise value, they must prove it.
As healthcare organizations navigate these challenges, shared-use mobile devices have emerged as one of the most powerful levers for doing more with less. The 2025 Imprivata state of shared mobile devices in healthcare report reveals that organizations save an average of $1.1 million annually by adopting shared-use devices instead of 1:1 or bring-your-own-device (BYOD) models. Nearly all healthcare leaders surveyed (99%) anticipate usage will increase in the next two years, underscoring the urgency to capture and highlight those savings.
And as an emergency physician, I’ve seen firsthand how the availability and readiness of a mobile device can determine whether clinicians have a seamless, supportive experience with technology or face frustrating barriers that fuel burnout—underscoring that true return on investment (ROI) isn’t only measured financially, but in how well these tools empower care delivery teams physically and remotely.
In an era where cyberattacks can directly endanger patient safety and limited resources make it harder to keep up with increasing care demands, the million-dollar question for hospital leaders isn’t whether to invest in mobile, but how to ensure every mobile device delivers measurable value to both workflow efficiency and security.
Why a shared device model is better than 1:1 or BYOD for ROI
Unlike a 1:1 model where every clinician gets their own device, shared mobile programs maximize device utilization across shifts and departments. That means lower acquisition, licensing, and support costs. According to the report, 92% of leaders agree shared-use devices deliver greater ROI than 1:1 or BYOD models.
With 1:1 models, organizations often run into predictable challenges: hundreds or even thousands of devices must be purchased, configured, updated, and secured whether they’re actively being used or sitting idle in lockers and drawers. These devices are often underutilized as routine maintenance becomes inconsistent. This approach also forces IT to track and support a sprawling fleet of devices that grows in lockstep with hiring. The result is more spent on devices, increased IT issues and risks stemming from poor device maintenance, lower utilization, and greater strain on already-limited IT resources.
BYOD models introduce a different set of challenges. When clinicians use personal devices, IT loses visibility and control over endpoint security. Security policies become difficult to enforce, app versions and operating systems vary, and sensitive patient data can end up on unsecured devices that were never designed to meet healthcare compliance standards. This increases the risk of a HIPAA violation and makes for an inconsistent clinical experience—leaving some staff with reliable, though potentially unsecure, access while others struggle with compatibility or performance issues.
On the other hand, shared-use mobile devices eliminate this inconsistency by ensuring every clinician has access to a hospital-owned and managed, fully secured, and properly configured device that integrates seamlessly into the workflow and with existing systems. This improves IT visibility, strengthens compliance, and reduces risk. In fact, healthcare organizations with a fully implemented shared mobile program report 63% greater ROI than those without—$1.4 million annually compared to $860K. These are benefits a fragmented 1:1 or BYOD model simply can’t match.
The clinical impact
Beyond monetary savings, healthcare organizations experience notable clinical workflow improvements when utilizing shared-use mobile devices. Findings from the report reveal organizations experience the following five benefits:
- 67% cite better coordination and communication
- 54% point to improved access to clinical applications
- 51% report seeing faster patient care delivery
- 90% say mobile helps reduce burnout
- 94% report higher staff satisfaction
These findings signal that an effective mobile device strategy means less wasted time, less frustration, and more time focused on patients.
And as an emergency physician, I can attest that nothing is more frustrating than watching precious minutes slip away because of technology challenges like outdated access processes, time that should be spent at the patient’s side instead of wrestling with technology. Yet, despite these benefits, many hospitals using mobile devices remain ill-equipped to realize full ROI—reducing their potential million-dollar savings and long-term care and clinical benefits.
The catch: Gaps in governance erode ROI
So, what’s causing those savings to slip away? Data reveals that governance gaps are the biggest culprit. The Imprivata report highlights that 44% of healthcare organizations lack a comprehensive mobile policy, instead relying on manual processes, handoffs, or first-come, first-served device assignment.
This lack of governance has ripple effects, like:
- 3+ hours per week in delays for every device that inevitably goes missing
- Help desk tickets averaging $70 each for lockouts
- 87% struggle with access challenges like lockouts on devices
- 23% of devices are lost each year
- 81% of clinicians reverting to personal devices, potentially exposing PHI and risking HIPAA compliance
The million-dollar ROI is measurable, but only when organizations implement strategies to close these gaps. And fortunately, there’s a way to do so without choosing between efficiency and security. It starts with deploying a shared mobile model instead of 1:1 or BYOD.
Smarter mobile strategies
With identity-driven, policy-enforced shared mobile strategies leveraging passwordless authentication, streamlined single sign-on, automated device check-in and check-out, and real-time visibility, clinicians can access a fully personalized device in seconds and update records at the bedside instead of the nurses’ station. At the same time, hospitals can eliminate risky workarounds like password sharing, reduce staff burnout, and improve satisfaction.
A shared mobile program coupled with a comprehensive mobile policy turns devices into pooled resources that stay in circulation around the clock, always checked out and checked back in, monitored for updates and IT maintenance, and ready for the next user. This model keeps costs contained while leveraging asset tracking and access management to improve accountability, utilization, and security.
The $1 million question
As the data reveals, the question isn’t whether mobile devices drive ROI—they do. The question is whether hospitals are set up to capture full value, or whether poor governance, device loss, and access inefficiencies will keep bleeding it away.
For healthcare leaders, the answer requires more than just buying the devices themselves and instead:
- Implementing comprehensive shared mobile access management policies
- Investing in identity-first programs leveraging passwordless authentication
- Giving clinicians secure, fast, and reliable access at intake and the bedside
It’s time to remove the pressure being placed on clinicians to act as a mobile IT manager and instead allow them to just show up to do the job they were hired to do.
Because when every second counts and every moment can be life-critical, the million-dollar question isn’t only about proving ROI. It’s about improving patient outcomes. And—I say this with first-hand experience—that’s a return no hospital can afford to ignore.
Learn how to prove ROI from your mobile strategy with Imprivata.