Even before the coronavirus outbreak, it wasn’t unheard of for industries to outsource some parts of their business. However, some are extra careful when it comes to IT services since delegating a crucial part of your business can make or break it.
The COVID-19 pandemic has forced every industry to adjust and/or innovate faster. Without question, healthcare was one of the sectors affected the most.
What Is an MSP?
You may have heard about it before, but you’re unsure what it is and what it’s for. So what exactly is an MSP? The term managed service provider (MSP) is most commonly used in the context of information technology (IT). An MSP is a company that offers a variety of IT services to small and medium businesses, including but not limited to remotely managing their whole IT infrastructure.
In short, you get a reliable MSP to outsource all of your IT solutions, or an aspect of it, to a team of experts who are experienced and well versed in handling your IT needs 24/7.
As part of the healthcare industry, you understand that every practice is different and each one has unique IT needs. An MSP can assess all of your hardware devices, software tools, and entire network to determine the most suitable IT solutions for your clinic.
How Exactly Can an MSP Help My Practice?
Now that you know what an MSP is, you might ask, “How is having an MSP any different from hiring my own internal IT staff?” Here’s how an MSP can help the healthcare industry, including small and medium-sized practices like yours:
Become Your “In-House” IT Team
MSPs have certified IT experts that can handle high-level issues.
It’s important to have an IT staff that you can call anytime…even on holidays! With an MSP that is available 24/7, you not only get instant help no matter the magnitude of your IT problem, you also have a team that proactively monitors your systems to prevent future issues from happening.
Improve Patient Experience
Improving the patient experience leads to increased patient satisfaction. Increased patient satisfaction leads to a better reputation. A better reputation is good for your bottomline!
Technology plays a vital role in strengthening the relationships with your patients. It makes lives less difficult, especially during the new normal.
As if you’re not already facing severe challenges, it can be a headache to stay up to date with the latest technological breakthroughs and the cybersecurity risks that come along with them. Delegating your IT concerns to a reputable MSP allows you to focus on what you do best: providing quality care to your patients.
As a bonus, your staff will be grateful to you for partnering with an MSP that’s always there to help them with their applications, devices, and network issues―which have become more common given the new work setup they have.
Stay HIPAA Compliant and Prevent Penalties
From regular compliance audits to cybersecurity training, keeping up with compliance requirements can be a huge challenge. Even if you’re tech-savvy, running these things by yourself will take a lot of your time and energy, not to mention the risk of hefty fines if things are done haphazardly.
An MSP, especially one with years of experience in the healthcare industry, can take care of these things for you.
When looking for an MSP, you’ll want to partner with one that has helped many healthcare providers with their compliance requirements. An MSP that has helped businesses prevent multiple threats like a ransomware attack or a company-wide phishing scam can increase your confidence and give you peace of mind.
An MSP that Specializes in Healthcare
We understand that spreading yourself too thin can lead to poor results. In healthcare, that’s very dangerous. You don’t need to push yourself and your staff to the limit to make sure you take care of your patients well.
Healthcare providers need quality IT support to safely and efficiently oversee the mountains of paperwork, electronic health records, and patient data you store. With over one hundred and twenty current healthcare clients, over four thousand two hundred devices under management, and three decades of practical experience working in the healthcare industry, ICS Healthcare can support your every technology need.