How to move your patient management to the cloud

There is increasing evidence pointing to the benefits of switching your patient management to the cloud, but for many health professionals, migrating everything to a new system seems like a daunting task.

In this article, we debunk some of the myths around switching to the cloud and reveal some simple ways you can make the move simple, effortless and stress free.

Industry readiness to move patient management to the cloud

One of the misunderstandings in industry conversations is that GPs, especially those who are used to paper-based or on-premise clinical management solutions aren’t quite ready for the cloud, or hesitant to embrace change.

However, there is increasing evidence pointing to an increase in cloud-uptake by organisations globally, and more healthcare providers serious about future-proofing their IT infrastructure are now switching from server-based patient management software to the cloud.

“By 2030, cloud technologies will be so embedded that memories from the pre-cloud era will feel positively archaic by comparison,” the Realizing 2030 survey, stated.

Meanwhile, a new study by BCC Research has revealed cloud computing is now becoming more widely adopted. In fact, the report showed increased patient and practitioner expectations for healthcare technology to offer anytime/anywhere access is driving the adoption of cloud technology across the healthcare space, globally.

The report, Healthcare Cloud Computing: Global Markets to 2022, predicts the global market for healthcare cloud computing to grow at a compound annual growth rate of 11.6% from 2017 through 2022, to reach $35.0 billion by 2022. This exponential growth is linked to cloud-based solutions allowing faster access from anywhere, and any device, while offering better diagnostic quality and instant online access to patient images and reports.

“Many in healthcare systems still rely on handwritten notes and paper charts,” BCC Research senior IT editor, Michael Sullivan, said. “Investing in cloud for healthcare providers represents a cultural change that will require time to realise, but even still, BCC Research expects a greater portion of total healthcare IT spending to migrate to cloud technologies.”

On top of this, a survey conducted by KLAS Research found 70 per cent of healthcare organisations in the US have moved at least some applications or IT infrastructure off-premises and over half of those healthcare organisations have moved their electronic medical record (EMR) applications to a hosting or cloud environment. Among the surveyed healthcare provider organisations, cloud infrastructure providers were the most commonly considered.

In Australia, a white paper by MedicalDirector revealed the benefits of cloud-based health solutions, with, 64% of respondents admitting they consider flexibility to be the main benefit of using a cloud-based HER/PMS systems.

Switching patient management from server to the cloud

Cloud-based clinical management solutions offer flexibility, scalability and speed, while keeping security a priority. Meanwhile with increasing use of mobile devices in healthcare, cloud offers the ability to be accessible anywhere, anytime and on any device, minimising the inefficiencies and rigidity of on-premise systems.

Switching to the cloud, can be a seamless experience with clinical and practice management software like MedicalDirector’s award-winning solution, Helix.

The process is simple, safe, secure and personal and generally involves the following steps:

• Contact: Contact the MedicalDirector team to discuss the switching process
• Migration: MedicalDirector works closely with you throughout the entire migration process to the cloud, with full data encryption to ensure switching is safe and secure
• Training: Once the software is up and running, every user received training so using the software quickly becomes second nature
• Ongoing support: You receive ongoing support, communication, tips and advice to help ensure you’re getting the most out of your cloud software.

To find out more about making the switch to cloud software, visit https://www.medicaldirector.com/products/helix