Skepticism about the cloud is finally waning. Companies were often most skeptical about the 
security risks involved with doing business in the cloud. This includes healthcare facilities that didn’t want to store their radiological images anywhere but on site.
As cloud-based groups proved they could be reliable, mostly through choosing to store data with ultra-secure data centers, healthcare facilities began to see the opportunities that the cloud could offer that other services couldn’t through Cloud picture archiving and communication systems (PACS).
When the Internet was first swinging into wide use across many industries, the process of sharing images digitally was cost prohibitive, which is why many radiologists wouldn’t consider it. Instead, they invested in almost-as-expensive CD burning technology and continued to mail their images to the specialists who needed to see them. This had its own set of downfalls, especially considering that the burners didn’t always work and nobody would know about it until the CD arrived in the mail and held only corrupt data.
As the technology surrounding PACS began to become less costly, more and more healthcare facilities, already saddled with developing an effective electronic health records solution, began investing in PACS. The migration to a cloud-based system is a natural progression for most healthcare professionals looking to gain more efficiencies.
Radiologists and other healthcare professionals relying on images to make diagnoses and prescribe a course of treatment wanted a convenient and efficient method of storing and sharing images, and they’ve found it in vendor-neutral solutions offered by cloud-based vendors.
Anyone familiar with Apple’s iCloud knows the basics of cloud computing. iCloud users can store notes, access their calendar and contacts, make a reminder list, develop Keynote presentations and access several bits of personal data. Vendors offering image storage and sharing in the cloud offer tools and interfaces that make it easy to access images, 24/7.
Web-based solutions offer more flexibility. Instead of having to be at a workstation with the right hardware and software, all one needs is a username, password and a computer. IT departments are thrilled because they don’t have to maintain servers, hardware or renew software licenses. Everything is stored offsite, which means hospitals don’t need dedicated space to store images or house expensive servers, routers and switches in a climate controlled room.
Healthcare facilities often take on a PACS solution that doesn’t have a proper disaster recovery solution available to them, especially those that rely on on-site servers to store their data. They don’t often get a responsive partner to work through the various needs that come up when sharing and storing medical images.
OffSite Image Management, Inc., offers cloud PACS that will support current and future clients for many years to come. OffSite clients don’t have to concern themselves about going with their solution and winding up phased out due to changes in technology. With the comprehensive cloud PACS solution offered by OffSite, clients have zero administration work to do. They also get automatic upgrades and total mobility.