Practice Fusion gives the top pros and cons of cloud-based EHRs
Trying to calculating your return on investment when switching from from an in-house EHR to a new cloud-based EHR? In addition to the initial cost savings compared to purchasing and maintaining a local server-based system, cloud-based EHRs like Practice Fusion’s also include many hidden benefits that can be overlooked when assessing the impact of switching. Here are the top 7 benefits compared to server-based systems:
| Cloud-based EHR | Local, server-based EHR |
|---|---|
| - Most cost effective for solo and small practices. | - Most expensive solution for private practice, often a solution for hospitals. |
| - All data is kept in a secure private cloud – the data hosting, backup, security and up-time availability are all in the background. | - Data is stored in the physician’s office making it liable to local disasters like power outages, hardware issues, flooding and system crashes. |
| - Easily recover your files if your office experiences a disaster such as a fire or flood. Your files are secure in the cloud and accessible wherever you have an internet connection.* *Specific to country limitations | - Working disaster recovery plan is burdened on the physician and often other technical resources. |
| - Reduces costs by eliminating the need to have separate servers, backup systems, installation of application updates, and significantly reduces the need for IT support. | - Requires a large investment into IT infrastructure and support. |
| - Updates are released automatically during off hours and requires no patient downtime. | - Requires you to shut down practice or not see patients when installing new modules or upgrades. |
| - Live in minutes and quickly connect to e-prescribing, labs, diagnostic centers and more. | - Extensive install and implementation commitment that can be time consuming and expensive. |
| - Easy access to clinical support tools that providers can use to support decision making. | - Tools require local installations, system upgrades, and maintenance. |
