June 20
While other industries have been rapidly adapting to digital transformations for decades, the healthcare industry has been held back for a number of reasons. However, as we’ve seen over the last few years, a digital revolution is possible — and imperative — for the healthcare industry.
In our previous blog, An Introduction to Digital Transformation in Healthcare, we discussed:
- How COVID emphasized and accelerated the importance of digitization.
- The specific needs the healthcare industry has that digital solutions can solve.
- The benefits of creating a solution based on the needs and demands of your specific business.
Read the full blog post here. Below, we’ll continue the discussion of digital transformation in healthcare with a focus on cloud computing and its benefits for the healthcare industry.
Cloud Computing in the Healthcare Industry
Hybrid and public cloud infrastructure has long been a powerful tool to help healthcare entities deliver powerful, and compliant outcomes for their customers.
Healthcare Advancements That Require Digital Solutions
Prior to digital solutions, healthcare patients were required to print and fax their records or go without these medical documents, which often delayed care due to paperwork issues.
Modern healthcare consumers need immediate access to their information. Whether they want to take that information to another doctor, begin a wellness program that requires their medical history, or just have in-depth knowledge about their current health, patients want access to their data in real time.
Application agility improves data transfer and patient outcomes. Hybrid is now the default architecture for most healthcare entities, as the cloud has designed industry specific tools to help make information flow and the world healthier.
What Are the Benefits of Cloud Computing for Healthcare?
While there are several advantages of cloud and hybrid computing solutions for the healthcare industry, three crucial benefits include:
- Cost efficiency. In-house, on-premises cloud computing solutions can be expensive for organizations — particularly when managing maintenance and updates to the equipment. With the cloud, the management of physical infrastructure is out of your hands so you can focus on effectively running your business to improve the lives of patients.
- Security & Compliance. One of the main concerns for healthcare businesses is the security of the cloud. However, many leading cloud providers have certifications and meet rigorous standards that allow your organization’s information to be securely stored. For example, AWS meets compliance requirements for FedRAMP, HIPAA, PCI and more.
- Accessibility. With the growth of remote and hybrid roles — including for some positions within the healthcare industry — data accessibility is critical. The cloud allows for remote access to the information you need to quickly make effective business decisions, streamline operations, and make your organization more efficient.
Cloud computing in healthcare can provide organizations and patients with these benefits, but it doesn’t stop there.
What Does Technology in Healthcare Look Like in the Future?
The future of healthcare IT has a few key components, including:
Interoperability
Interoperability is the ability of computing systems to utilize and share information. In other words, interoperable systems can communicate and work with one another, which can reshape and improve the entire healthcare experience.
By investing in cloud computing, your business can have the upper hand with interoperability, as the cloud was built with it in mind.
For example, patients could have the ability to immediately access and send their information to another healthcare provider or specialist, if they need to see one, without requesting their records from their current provider and waiting for the files to be sent. This feature can prevent delayed care, issues with the patient’s care plan, and harm to their health.
Innovation
With cloud-based computing systems, innovation can happen quickly and efficiently.
For example, Azure created a cloud-based platform as a service (PaaS) called Azure Health Data Services that allows “customers to engage in activities ranging from novel biomarker identification to virtual clinical decision support.” Read more about this new application here.
That, however, is just one example of the innovation that can occur with cloud-based systems. These programs and applications can allow patients and physicians to connect quickly, allowing for healthcare businesses to improve their daily processes, reduce overhead costs, and promote their services in new ways, such as advancements within telemedicine.
Flexibility
In most industries, application agility is important, but in healthcare, it’s critical. Without an accurate and quick application, patients could lose access to the care they need.
Certain applications run better on different infrastructures, so healthcare industries in particular need to ensure their applications are working within the most effective environment possible. However, making sure your application is always in an optimal environment is made difficult by the evolution of applications throughout their lifetimes.
To account for these shifts, modern programs, such as Evoque’s Multi-Generational Infrastructure, provide flexibility to adjust application needs within the original contract.
To keep up with these evolving technology demands within the industry, the future of healthcare will require interoperability, innovation, and flexibility throughout all infrastructure and data storage solutions.
Partner With Cloud Experts for a Smooth Digital Transformation
By partnering with seasoned professionals who are informed and experienced with healthcare compliance requirements, such as HIPAA, a seamless digital transformation for your healthcare business is possible.
Evoque’s cloud experts can help your business effectively utilize a Multi-Generational Infrastructure approach to create a flexible, cost-effective solution that improves day-to-day operations and supports the evolving technology needs of your organization.
If you’re ready to get started, talk with a Cloud Expert today to discover how Evoque can help you design the optimal solution for your business.
