Torn between two completely different paths right now and could use some real world input.

We run a small physical therapy clinic and want to give patients a way to track exercises and message us directly. Looked at a few off the shelf platforms first since they're cheaper and faster to launch, but none of them quite fit how our clinic actually operates. Now considering custom healthcare app development instead, even though it means a bigger upfront investment and a longer timeline.

Part of me thinks off the shelf is the practical choice for a clinic our size, but another part worries we'll outgrow it within a year and end up rebuilding anyway.

Things I keep circling back to:

• Whether a small clinic really needs something custom or if that's overkill at our current scale

• How painful it actually is to migrate later if we start off the shelf and outgrow it

Anyone run a similar sized practice and made this call already? What pushed you one way or the other?