You may have heard about the cloud already. Perhaps you’re setting up a new healthcare practice, or maybe it’s time to upgrade your existing clinical software and you’re looking at your options. Cloud practice management software is becoming more common among practices of all shapes and sizes and for good reason. There are a number of benefits to choosing a cloud-based software solution over more traditional on-premise software.
- Security
When you have on-premise clinical software, you’re responsible for data security and backups. For most practices, this means paying a third-party IT provider and keeping your server locked in a storage room.
With cloud software, you don’t have a physical server – your server is stored in a secure data centre and you access it remotely. This has a number of advantages in terms of security. To start with, data centres have state of the art security and around the clock monitoring so it’s very difficult for anyone to break in and get access to your server.
As well as physical security, most cloud providers have a team of cyber security experts on hand to monitor any potential threats or vulnerabilities in your systems. This level of protection is not likely to be within the reach of most healthcare providers unless they’re prepared to pay a lot in IT costs.
- Cost
Cloud practice management software can help you save costs in a number of ways. Because you don’t have a physical server, your infrastructure costs are greatly reduced. Without a server, you don’t need to have space to house one. Your IT costs can be further reduced by the fact that you don’t need to pay someone to update or maintain your server and software for you – this is all taken care of by the cloud provider.
Because cloud software can be accessed from any device, you may find that your hardware needs are reduced, saving you further costs.
- Convenience
One major difference between cloud and on-premise software is that there’s no need to do your own updates with the cloud. When you have on-premise software, you’ll usually spend a considerable amount of time downloading and installing updates manually. This takes time away from staff who could be doing other things, and also leads to downtime when your systems are inaccessible. With the cloud, all updates are taken care of for you. They’re done in the background and you won’t even know until your next login.
The cloud gives you immediate access to the latest features and functionality, so you can be sure that whatever version of the software you’re using, it’s going to be up to date and compliant with the latest regulations and Medicare changes.
- Flexibility
With the cloud, you access your software through your internet browser, rather than having it downloaded and installed on your computer. This means you can access your clinical software from any device as long as you have an internet connection. Your practitioners can work from home, their car or other healthcare facilities if they are out and about seeing patients.
With so much of the workforce moving to a more remote way of working, the increased flexibility can help your practitioners enjoy a better work-life balance and work in the locations and at the times that suit them and their patients instead of being tied to a physical clinic and its opening hours.
- Efficiency
Cloud software is designed to be intuitive and user-friendly. With fewer clicks and faster load times, your staff can save time on their routine tasks, giving them more time to focus on patients. Automation and integration take a lot of manual work out of data entry, improving workflows and overall productivity.
There are a lot of reasons to consider cloud practice management software, including cost, security, flexibility and efficiency. If you haven’t thought about it already, cloud software might be well worth a look.
