- Cloud computing is very beneficial for healthcare providers, provided that they take the right measures
Cloud computing isn’t a new term for any industry, and certainly not the healthcare field. Over the past few years, cloud technology adoption has been increasing exponentially. Although the exact impacts are not known, it’s anticipated that this trend will continue to increase, especially with a greater focus on being able to work with telehealth.
With an emphasis on improving the patient experience, healthcare is looking at the benefits of cloud computing and how it can impact their workflow. These are just a few of the benefits that healthcare teams can expect to see when making the change.
1. Fast Service
We all know that time is money and the healthcare industry is specially pressed for time. By making it easier and faster to access systems, providers can find information about their patients more rapidly than ever before. They can also use this saved time to spend more time with their patients or focus on areas that might otherwise be left behind. This is an area that patients and families expect and with faster speeds, it’s easier to get down to work. Hospitals that make the switch report an overall improvement in satisfaction.
2. Collaboration
Now that healthcare organizations are moving towards value-based payment methods, the collaboration between physicians, departments, and even institutions are more essential than ever before. Medical providers can transfer data between each other taking advantage of a cloud computing server. This means that instead of having to send off for information or waiting to get data, doctors and other healthcare providers can access this information easily. This leads to better treatment overall for the patient and usually fewer delays in care.
3. Cost-Efficient
There is a challenge that probably all industries are familiar with. Having to work with a tight budget which forces them to invest in keeping the lights on rather than focusing on innovation.
Since cloud computing works by running under a subscription model, healthcare providers can save valuable money and avoid having to purchase expensive equipment and systems. They can also use the cloud provider’s resources, helping to reduce costs even further.
4. Efficient Patient Care
Implementing cloud storage for electronic medical records has streamlined the process of patient care. With medical records being readily available, doctors can view the patient’s medical history much more easily. In the past, a patient would have a separate file at each doctor that they visit. Some records might even get lost if the office wasn’t careful with them.
However, now that all the records can be accessed via the cloud, doctors can see the interactions of other physicians and their patient to provide care that is consistent with that person’s medical history as well as current needs.
5. Data Management
Medical records, patient portals, mobile apps, and big data analytics are all needs of a healthcare system. Having to deal with this amount of data isn’t easy and not all of the in-house equipment may be able to store it. By using cloud computing, healthcare companies and institutions can store the data while avoiding the additional cost of having to maintain additional physical servers. The data can be stored very securely.
6. Privacy
Now that we live in the digital age, we are all aware that personal data can be lost or stolen online. It’s important that you understand how your hospital or healthcare institution manages their medical records so you can avoid running into problems.
It’s also a good idea to not answer any emails or calls, expect from ones in special apps or software programs are actually legitimate. One of the ways to easily avoid this being a problem is to use Spokeo reverse phone lookup to identify the caller or the sender. Spokeo email search is a simple but effective tool that you can use to avoid being taken in by a fake company that may be trying to steal your data.
You can also find a number of specialized cloud services for healthcare. For example, there are a lot of cloud fax services that healthcare companies benefit from.
When it comes to cloud computing, this is the future for almost every industry. These are just a few of the benefits that healthcare institutions are seeing when they make the switch. Although there can be a bit of a learning curve at first, all end up having a great experience and seeing long-term benefits for their system.