Cloud Computing in Healthcare: The Complete Guide

Author: Kelley Donald - MarCom/Friday, March 18, 2022/Categories: Business Internet

Why is Cloud Computing so Appealing for Healthcare?

There are several reasons why cloud computing has become such a game-changer for the healthcare industry. Some of these include:

  • Improved Collaboration. Having one centralized place for all the data and workflows related to a healthcare platform makes for much more efficient and streamlined collaboration across teams. Cloud computing in healthcare has helped to achieve this by creating a single source of truth from which all stakeholders can draw their information. Gone are the days of miscommunication and incompatible systems causing errors – a well-built cloud computing platform ensures that everyone is working from the same page.

 

  • Artificial Intelligence and Machine Learning. Cloud computing in healthcare opens up a wide range of new computing capabilities that just wasn’t possible with traditional hardware. Being able to leverage highly sophisticated GPUs and other computing power in the cloud means that healthcare organizations can start to experiment with advanced algorithms and machine learning methods that could produce incredible new insights and discoveries. Instead of having to build this capacity in-house, medical practitioners can rent these capabilities at an affordable price and benefit from everything that AI and machine learning have to offer. For example, many healthcare practitioners have turned to machine learning algorithms to help with clinical decision support, tracking patterns in data, scans, and test results to provide another perspective on a potential diagnosis. All of this is only possible if the processing can be performed in a secure and scalable cloud solution.

 

  • Data Storage. We’ve mentioned it above, but having access to limitless storage makes dealing with large data sets a breeze. Combine this with the fact that you can easily create backups, and you can ramp your storage needs up and down as required, and you start to realize how transformational this really is. To illustrate just how significant this shift is, you need only look at Cerner, the largest holder of health records globally, and how their strategic collaboration with Amazon Web Services has made for a rapid acceleration in cloud adoption worldwide.

 

  • Scalability. Utilizing cloud computing in healthcare gives you the flexibility to scale up and down in real-time, depending on how things are going with your organization. The agility that this provides means that you aren’t wasting resources when you don’t need them, but when you do face a crunch period, you can call in the cavalry and know that you’ll have what you need. This allows you to adapt quickly to changing circumstances which is worth its weight in gold.

 

  • Cost. The cost of cloud computing continues to come down, and that makes it even more attractive for healthcare organizations that are looking to reduce their cost base. It’s a much more affordable option than building all the infrastructure in-house, and that makes a big difference to the bottom line.

 

Best Practices for Cloud Computing Deployment Within Healthcare

The first step is always to get a good understanding of what you’re trying to accomplish. Spend time auditing your current processes and identify areas where you think cloud computing could help to improve things. It’s important to come up with one consistent vision for how you are going to use this technology before you start looking to deploy it.

Next, you’ll need to identify what specific cloud computing platform you’re going to choose. There is a range of different options, and each one is better suited to certain key organizational characteristics. By balancing your budget, needs, regulatory environment, and other key factors – you can settle on your platform of choice that you want to deploy.

Now, it’s time to start moving data over. You’ll want to do this in a systematic way where you prioritize what is most important and work through those step by step. Along the way, take your time to test that the system is still working as expected and that you’re getting the performance, cost, and security benefits that you were expecting. Fixing problems early is a great way to avoid larger ones down the line.

At the same time, you’ll also want to be working hand in hand with your employees to ensure a smooth transition across to these new systems. This change management is important because those team members are ultimately the end-users, and you don’t want them to feel like they weren’t a part of the process. This guide from Lucidchart gives a good account of why this particular part of the process is so important and what you can do to make the transition as painless as possible.

 

If this all feels a bit overwhelming, you can also work with a professional technology service provider who can walk this journey with you and help you deploy your cloud computing system in a way that is best suited for your organization.

Here at Consolidated Communications, we are well-positioned to do exactly that. We pride ourselves in delivering the most advanced communications solutions to keep healthcare organizations like yours moving forward. Our proven fiber network reliability serves as a foundation for cloud computing technologies. When you work with us, we are an extension of your team, serving you locally to help your cloud computing performance supercharge your operations.

If you’d like to explore this option, get in touch today, and let’s see how we can help you take things to the next level.

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