Hyndman Area Health Center transitioned to cloud-based servers, increasing patients and saving money; uses telehealth and cloud EHR to streamline operations and improve care.
Hyndman Area Health Center is a Pennsylvania-based health center that provides family medicine, dental health, behavioral health, and more. To meet an increasing demand for data, the center transitioned from client-hosted servers to eClinicalWorks cloud-based servers, resulting in a more than 150% increase in patients and hundreds of thousands of dollars in savings.
Healthcare IT News recently spoke with Bill Kurtycz, CEO of Hyndman Area Health Center, to discuss the benefits of cloud technology, cloud EHRs, and telehealth. Kurtycz explained that the center turned to telehealth during the pandemic to provide care to their community, and that the feature integrated easily with their existing IT infrastructure. They used telehealth for primary care services, medicated assisted treatment, and virtual counseling. Additionally, telehealth minimized the challenges faced by their patients with social determinants of health, such as transportation.
Kurtycz also discussed their work with eClinicalWorks Cloud EHR, powered by Microsoft Azure, which they used to streamline operations and provide quality care to patients. The center faced an influx of 400% more patients during the pandemic, and the cost of tripling the number of physical servers was not sustainable. After a financial analysis, the center decided to move to the cloud, which saved them money and allowed them to focus on patient care.
The transition to the cloud has improved efficiencies and patient care. The cloud provides real-time zonal and regional redundancy, so data remains accessible and secure no matter what. It has also cut the IT bill in half, and providers report greater satisfaction due to faster network speeds. Patients experience a more streamlined care experience, and providers have access to more accurate care with search and data-analysis tools from the EHR vendor.
Kurtycz recommends any practice struggling to meet demand or looking to scale to explore the cloud, as it was one of the best decisions the center made for their practice.
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