If you’ve been waiting for the right time to get your hospital’s data storage in the cloud, the moment is rapidly approaching where you’ll be left behind if you don’t get on board.

If you still aren’t entirely sure what cloud computing is, think of it in terms of how the ownership of home video evolved. 15 years ago, you not only paid for the purchase of the hard item (VHS tape, DVD), you paid for a cabinet for storage in your home, cleaning products to maintain the movies and the cabinet and then dealt with not being able to access those movies from anywhere except where they were stored. (And let’s not forget the soft case or tub that you put DVDs and VHS tapes in when you travel with the family. That’s a secondary storage method to be bought and one with a high susceptibility to a lack of security.)

What’s the only way to increase your access to movies that are available to you? Buy more videos for your library. And then more storage. The cycle feeds upon itself.

Now compare that to some of the offerings On-Demand services like Netflix. Instant access to a large library of videos. Pay at various levels that match your consumption. No need for storage, no need for cleaner, no need for maintenance or repair. Access from anywhere. An extreme reduction in the risk of theft. Want more movies? Upgrade the service. Need less content or a slower delivery method? Scale it back. The burden of access, maintenance and storage is shifted from internal to external. That’s the benefit of cloud computing in a very loose and fast analogy.

Instead of investing in giant server rooms and the staff that are needed to support them, the cloud lets your hospital scale up and scale down your needs by using a network of servers that exist offsite. Data backups and recovery as well as site uptime and network speed are all increased with cloud computing.Your people get faster and more consistent access to the information they need, allowing them to focus on the compassion and care that defines their job. But unlike the behavior cycle that was dictated by the hard copy nature of movies, this loop only contributes to the patient care that’s delivered by your staff.

“So what’s the greatest concern and barrier to adoption of cloud computing?” For hospitals, and other institutions with HIPPA and HITECH mandates, it’s data security. Withsensitive data is stored offsite in the nebulous network of cloud computer servers, hospital administrators have beenapprehensive about regulatory compliance and patient trust.

Another potential hurdle is the availability of high-speed Internet access, which is essential for cloud computing; this has kept many rural healthcare facilities from being able to network in the cloud.

However, with such tech giants as IBM, Microsoft and Google, as well as a host of venture capital firms, blazing the way forward on Internet accessibility and cloud networking security, many of the concerns of just a few years ago have been laid to rest and a new era of healthcare cloud computing is ready to launch. The VHS and DVD are dead; Hulu, Netflix, Apple TV now meet the content library and access demand. (Recognize the cost comparison of one new DVD versus premium access for those services. It’s about the same. Which should you choose?)

For your hospital, it means cost savings in both technology investments, energy usage and time as patient records. It also means your hospital can take advantage of the many emerging healthcare-focused applications being created by entrepreneurs from Silicon Valley to Boston that are made possible by cloud computing.

For patient experience, it means smoothing procedures and breaking the walls that exist between patient records and healthcare professionals. Imagine being able to tell your patients that you’ve invested in a way that, with their consent, their medical records can be assessed by another hospital should an emergency arise while they are on vacation or a business trip. No more soft cases. No more tubs. No more storage cabinets. No scratched DVDs. No worn out tapes. They get  HD quality information and servce delivered instantly and compassionately.

At BerylHealth we have the knowledge, technology, staff and partnerships to make cloud computing for your hospital a reality. You deemed it cost and access effective to dump the DVD and VHS cabinet years ago, it’s time to do the same for your hospital system.