The importance of high quality infrastructure in cloud computing.

In this day and age virtually everyone sees the value and convenience of cloud computing.  Whether its banking, paying bills, buying anything from cars and houses to groceries, cloud computing has become an integral part of all of our lives.  There are numerous reasons for this, which I don't need to go into here. 

Chiropractic office software is no exception.  Anyone who uses a cloud based EHR system knows the great benefits and conveniences this platform provides.  That being said, are all cloud based products alike?  The answer is clearly NO.  There are many cut-rate products out there that keep their prices low by providing limited or no support, and by using lower quality infrastructure.  Its obvious what limited support can mean to your practice.  But how does a lower quality infrastructure affect your practice on an everyday basis?

Most EHR companies don't mention infrastructure.  They will tout features and price alone, but use low budget infrastructure options to lower their pricing.  However, a poor infrastructure can make your life miserable.  Users of such EHRs experience frequent interruptions of service such as being logged out and having to log back in frequently, slow speeds and a lot of dead time waiting for pages to load.  Does anyone really have time to deal with such annoyances??  For a doctor seeing 4-5 patients per day, maybe this is not such a big issue.  But for any busy practice this is intolerable.  I can't imagine anyone would say that saving $25/month or so is worth the constant hassles.

If you are in the market for a new EHR system, be sure to question the companies you investigate about their infrastructure.  Look at their testimonials and, if you even see one complaint of slow speeds or spotty service, stay away !!  It is just not worth it if your goal is to focus on seeing more patients and to be efficient and profitable.

Dr Rick