Managed IT Services and Healthcare
Probably more than any other industry, healthcare is heavily regulated, scrutinized, and always under the microscope. When it comes to technology and healthcare, the two go hand in hand. With the introduction of HIPAA (Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act) and HITECH (Health Information Technology for Economic and Clinical Health Act) they way in which doctors offices, addiction treatment/rehab centers, hospitals, and all healthcare related sectors depend on technology has changed. A good Managed IT Service provider allows for these organizations to get cutting edge technology and compliance at an affordable price.
A HIPAA and HITECH trained Managed IT Service provider will know the ins and outs of HIPAA compliancy and do regular risk assessments to make sure you remain in compliance. What a lot of healthcare organizations fail to realize is once you are in compliance, its an ongoing process to remain in compliance. As hardware and software becomes dated, updates need to be performed. Outdated infrastructure can lead to security breaches, improper storage of patient information, and leave you at risk of fines. Anti-virus must be up-to-date, your backups must be tested to make sure they are done correctly on a regular basis, and you must have a disaster recovery plan in place. The biggest issue we see is that most doctors offices, clinics, and healthcare agencies think they are in compliance because they have hired an IT consultant, but fail to see that there is an in-depth and ONGOING process that needs to be looked at as well. If your Managed IT Service provider is not doing quarterly assessments, routine updates, then more than likely you are not going to be in compliance.
If your organization experienced data loss, what is your disaster recovery plan? How long will it take to implement? Is all of your hardware and software up to date? Are regular security checks ran? Is something as simple as your anti-virus being up-to-date properly managed? If you cannot answer these questions without hesitation, the Managed IT Services professionals at TheCompulab can help. Keep your practice safe, secure, compliant, and patient information friendly!
