Healthcare organizations acknowledge that trendy communications methods are vital to enhancing operational effectivity and securing delicate affected person info. Whereas some are gradual to undertake new applied sciences resulting from issues about HIPAA laws and potential dangers to affected person knowledge, it’s doable to strike a stability between innovation and compliance when updating older know-how. That is very true of an usually underrated however crucial know-how: fax servers.

The argument for modernization

In 2009, the HITECH Act was signed into legislation to speed up the shift to digital well being information (EHRs). Nonetheless, points resembling poor interoperability and vastly totally different requirements have led many suppliers to proceed utilizing fax servers to share medical information. In 2021, as many as seven in ten hospitals nonetheless depend on fax to ship and obtain well being info. Nevertheless, the healthcare panorama is altering quickly and there are a number of explanation why organizations need to modernize their communications methods.

Fax servers, that are restricted to sending and receiving faxes, have gotten more and more inefficient as organizations search for extra versatile communications instruments that facilitate communication throughout a number of units and platforms. Conventional fax servers usually include growing upkeep prices and poor or discontinued producer assist, which might put stress on workers and overhead IT budgets. Additionally they battle to maintain up with the calls for of recent healthcare environments, the place server outages can jeopardize enterprise processes. For instance, prior authorizations is probably not processed on time, leading to delays that disrupt vital enterprise processes, or vital info might slip by way of the cracks and trigger critical regulatory compliance setbacks. These limitations make fax servers significantly weak in an trade the place regulatory mandates and quick, safe communications throughout a number of units and platforms are vital.

Improved processes should not simply good to have. The U.S. healthcare trade will face a nationwide scarcity of 124,000 to 160,000 full-time physicians by 2025. Mixed with elevated affected person demand, this looming problem means healthcare organizations urgently want options that cut back delays and permit IT workers to give attention to vital work.

The very best of each worlds: a cloud-based, suitable fax resolution

A serious concern holding again healthcare organizations seeking to transfer to cloud fax methods is whether or not these options can present the identical degree of HIPAA compliance and reliability that conventional fax servers have offered for many years. Some organizations are hesitant to totally undertake cloud providers, together with cloud fax methods, resulting from issues about compliance challenges. 53% of execs say cloud compliance is simply too tough.

The excellent news is that cloud fax options designed with compliance in thoughts may help organizations navigate these complicated regulatory landscapes and provides them the peace of thoughts they want. These options provide built-in protections that guarantee affected person knowledge is at all times protected. By using the best cloud-based fax providers, healthcare organizations can be sure that delicate affected person info is transmitted securely with protocols that meet HIPAA compliance requirements.

Advantages that go far past compliance

Whereas HIPAA compliance is paramount for these seeking to transfer to the cloud, cloud fax affords many advantages that transcend authorized necessities. For instance, conventional fax servers that aren’t correctly sized might battle to deal with excessive volumes throughout peak durations, risking shedding vital info when the server can not settle for faxes. This will result in workflow disruptions and potential regulatory points. Cloud fax options deal with these challenges by offering seamless scalability, permitting healthcare organizations to satisfy rising demand and better communication volumes with out compromising knowledge integrity or service high quality.

By lowering the operational burden of managing on-premises fax servers, cloud fax additionally permits IT groups to streamline infrastructure obligations and enhance operational effectivity. It eliminates the necessity for particular fax {hardware} and eliminates the prices of telephony and fax infrastructure, software program, updates, administration and upkeep. The underside line is that cloud fax permits organizations to retain all of the performance and compliance of conventional fax methods, with the added comfort and effectivity of a cloud-based resolution.

The way forward for compliant digital transformation in healthcare

Healthcare organizations transferring to cloud fax preserve the compliance requirements they’ve relied on for years and luxuriate in the advantages of a contemporary, environment friendly communications system. Transferring to cloud-based fax options offers a handy, scalable and suitable various that addresses these dangers and improves workflow effectivity. By adopting digital options like cloud fax, the healthcare trade can take vital steps to stability innovation with regulatory compliance to modernize healthcare communications.

About Tim Armstrong

Tim Armstrong is Retarus' Head of Product Administration, Messaging and has a wealth of expertise at Retarus and in international B2B software program. At Retarus, Tim has held the positions of Head of Advertising and marketing and Chief of Workers. Beforehand, Tim labored at NICE and helped lead their Go-to-Market efforts of their Commerce Flooring Compliance actions.