A billing service and a practice system are different purchases
A Medserv alternative can mean two different things: someone else to do the billing, or another system for the practice to run on. Medserv answers the first with people: a billing team that codes, submits and chases insurer claims, and secretaries who work in your Medserv workspace. Ask Brigid answers the second with software your own team runs, and it does not submit insurer claims at all. The useful first question is which of the two you want to change.
If the billing is the job
Medserv's billing team codes and prices each invoice to the insurer's guidelines, submits it and follows up, and Medserv says it works with every major Irish insurer. Ask Brigid does not submit insurer claims in its launch release: your team raises invoices and takes card payments by payment link, and claims go through each insurer's own channel.
If the practice system is the job
Ask Brigid keeps the diary across rooms and hospital sessions, the record, invoices and one inbox for the whole clinic together, hosted in AWS Dublin (eu-west-1), for €129 or €299 a month + VAT with every seat included. Dictation returns editable text; where note assistance is enabled for the clinic, a note or letter is prepared for the clinician to check, edit and sign.
Who should stay with Medserv
If you want your insurer claims coded, submitted and chased by someone else, stay with Medserv: that is its core business, and Ask Brigid does not submit claims. The same goes if you want a named secretary handling your correspondence as part of the service, or patient text reminders and electronic prescriptions from your system today. Medserv lists all three; Ask Brigid offers none of them at launch.
Ask Brigid is built for Irish private consultants. Comparing several systems? The consultant buyer's guide compares the main consultant systems side by side, and the pricing page shows what each plan includes.
Sources
- Medserv, homepage — medserv.ie (checked 16 Oct 2026)
- Medserv, practice management software — medserv.ie/software (checked 16 Oct 2026)
- Medserv, medical billing — medserv.ie/billing-services (checked 16 Oct 2026)
- Medserv, remote practice management — medserv.ie/remote-practice (checked 16 Oct 2026)
- Medserv, security and compliance — medserv.ie/security-compliance (checked 16 Oct 2026)
- Medserv, about — medserv.ie/about (checked 16 Oct 2026)
- CCPC, merger case M/26/022 — ccpc.ie (checked 16 Oct 2026)
Feature Comparison
| Capabilities | Ask BrigidEarly access | Medserv |
|---|---|---|
| What you are buying Medserv offers “Medical billing, practice management software and tools, and remote practice management for Irish healthcare providers,” and its homepage title calls it “Ireland’s Largest Provider of Medical billing services.” Ask Brigid is the practice system: the diary across rooms and hospital sessions, the record, invoices and one inbox. (medserv.ie, checked 16 Oct 2026) | Ask Brigid Practice software your own team runs | MedservA billing service, with practice software and remote secretaries |
| Insurer claims Medserv’s billing service takes on submitting invoices to insurers and patients, with “coding and pricing to insurance company guidelines,” liaising with patients and insurers, and follow-up; it says it works with every major Irish insurer. Automated insurer claim submission is not in Ask Brigid’s launch release; staff use each insurer’s normal channel. (medserv.ie and medserv.ie/billing-services, checked 16 Oct 2026) | Ask Brigid Disabled· Not in launch | MedservIts billing team codes, submits and follows up |
| Price Medserv’s software page offers “Flexible terms” on a “30-day rolling contract” and shows no price, and its billing pages publish no fee. (medserv.ie/software, checked 16 Oct 2026) | Ask Brigid €129 (Essential) or €299 (Professional) a month, plus VAT, every seat included | MedservNot published; software on a 30-day rolling contract |
| Dictation and letters Medserv lists “Dictations” in its software and offers to “Dictate & Draft Letters Instantly via AI-assisted transcription or via human secretary.” In Ask Brigid, push-to-talk dictation works in any field and consult dictation returns the transcript to the patient record for the clinician to correct. Where enabled for the clinic, Brigid can prepare a note or letter from the consultation transcript or existing note. The clinician checks, edits and signs it before use. It does not diagnose, interpret results, recommend treatment or make a clinical decision. (medserv.ie/software and medserv.ie/remote-practice, checked 16 Oct 2026) | Ask Brigid Dictation returns editable text | MedservA dictation service; letters by AI-assisted transcription or a secretary |
| A secretary as part of the service Medserv says “Every client gets a named secretary who works within your Medserv workspace,” and that setup can take up to 8 weeks, depending on data migration. Ask Brigid is software only: your own team works the desk. (medserv.ie/remote-practice, checked 16 Oct 2026) | Ask Brigid | MedservA named secretary in your Medserv workspace |
| Patient text reminders Medserv’s software page lists text reminders to patients. Text messaging is not part of Ask Brigid’s launch release. (medserv.ie/software, checked 16 Oct 2026) | Ask Brigid Disabled· Not in launch | Medserv |
| Electronic prescriptions Medserv lists “Online Prescriptions: Issue electronic prescriptions for pharmacy collection or delivery.” Ask Brigid does not send prescriptions to pharmacies. (medserv.ie/software, checked 16 Oct 2026) | Ask Brigid | Medserv |
| Card payments from patients Ask Brigid sends the patient a payment link to pay by card. Medserv lists online payments through its secure payment portal. (medserv.ie/software, checked 16 Oct 2026) | Ask Brigid | Medserv |
| Data hosting and security Medserv says it holds ISO 27001 certification (announced 8 Dec 2025) and undergoes independent penetration testing; the pages we checked do not say where data is hosted. (medserv.ie/security-compliance, checked 16 Oct 2026) | Ask Brigid AWS Dublin (eu-west-1) | MedservISO 27001 certified; hosting location not stated |
| Taking your records with you Ask Brigid exports the whole record in a structured, machine-readable format, with documents as they were filed. | Ask Brigid Full export at any time, no exit fee | MedservNot publicly stated |
Switching from Medserv — common questions
- Does Ask Brigid do my billing for me, like Medserv?
- No. Medserv is a billing service: its team codes and prices invoices to each insurer’s guidelines, submits them and follows up (medserv.ie/billing-services, checked 16 Oct 2026). Ask Brigid is software: your team raises invoices and takes patient card payments by payment link, and automated insurer claim submission is not in the launch release, so claims go through each insurer’s own channel.
- What does Medserv cost compared with Ask Brigid?
- Medserv does not publish a price for its billing service or its software; its software page offers a 30-day rolling contract (medserv.ie/software, checked 16 Oct 2026). Ask Brigid publishes two flat prices: €129 a month (Essential) or €299 a month (Professional), plus VAT, with every seat included.
- Who owns Medserv?
- Medserv says it is an Irish company, founded in 2005 by Cormac Loughrey; its privacy statement names the company as Medical Account Services Limited. On 16 April 2026 the Competition and Consumer Protection Commission cleared the acquisition by MML Growth Capital Partners Ireland, through Vitalis Topco Limited, of indirect joint control of Medical Account Services Limited (case M/26/022, MML Capital/Medserv; ccpc.ie, checked 16 Oct 2026).
- How would my records move from Medserv to Ask Brigid?
- Through a clinic-approved migration: import scope and mappings are agreed with the practice, starting from what the current system can export, and representative records, permissions and rollback are tested before the practice accepts cutover. Ask Brigid does not connect to Medserv directly, and records can be exported from Ask Brigid at any time.
- Where is the data kept?
- Ask Brigid hosts primary records in AWS Dublin (eu-west-1). Medserv says it holds ISO 27001 certification and undergoes independent penetration testing; the Medserv pages we checked do not name a hosting location (medserv.ie/security-compliance, checked 16 Oct 2026).