Healthcare Providers Test the Waters of Cloud Technology
Most organizations are skeptical of cloud computing security and are taking a variety of approaches to cloud adoption.

OREM, UT, December 08, 2011 /24-7PressRelease/ -- Providers are beginning to consider cloud computing in healthcare, but their trust in public cloud options (such as Amazon and Google) is weak, according to KLAS perception report "Path to Cloud Computing Foggy: Perception Study 2011." One CIO of a facility with more than 1,000 beds told KLAS, "I don't know that there are a ton of major healthcare providers putting their patient data in the (public) cloud right now. From a liability perspective, it isn't as mature as some other industries. That is a major concern for me right now."

In addition to patient data security, two major provider concerns KLAS identified were data privacy and data control. As a result, a growing number of providers are gravitating toward private clouds, where they could use designated servers and ensure control and security of their data. A physician from a large 300 physician clinic said, "From a standalone practice's perspective, I am generally scared that I will lose my data. But if it is in the cloud, I know it is more secure. I can see why physicians who have their own practices might all want to use cloud solutions. Then they wouldn't have to worry about the security of the data on-site in their office."

The report found that 71 percent of respondents were either already deploying or considering to deploy cloud technology, with different organization sizes gravitating towards cloud for different reasons (such as cost savings, availability, security, or disaster recovery) and for different applications (such as clinical, general storage, email, or PACS). For example, stand-alone facilities (mainly physician practices) see cost and security benefits in linking up with larger organizations to obtain an EMR that is privately hosted in that parent organization's cloud. However, unlike stand-alones, hospitals in this report are taking a more cautious, staged approach to adopting the cloud.

To learn more about cloud computing, the report "Path to Cloud Computing Foggy: Perception Study 2011" is available to healthcare providers online for a significant discount. It defines cloud computing according to how healthcare providers currently perceive it. It also investigated how providers are using cloud computing, how they want to use it in the future, what virtualization technology they are currently using, and their reasoning behind going with a public or private cloud environment. To purchase the report, healthcare providers and vendors can visit www.KLASresearch.com/reports.

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Andrea Morrill
KLAS
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