2020 has undoubtedly hit healthcare hard. On one hand, the healthcare system is buckling under the pressure of managing the COVID-19 pandemic; on the other hand, unemployment has been alarmingly high. Federal labor statistics published in May revealed that the healthcare industry is second only to hospitality in job losses, due to the decline in elective surgeries and non-critical care.
As a result, healthcare workers face reduced budgets despite the relentless demand for seamless care and adopting new technologies and protocols for sanitation and distancing. Practitioners must be agile in adapting to the pandemic’s evolving needs as well as the resulting pressure placed on operational systems and infrastructure.
Now is the time to employ Managed Services to support healthcare staff by streamlining and managing evolving IT demands. According to CompTIA’s “Fourth Annual Trends in Managed Services Study” of June 2015, 56% of businesses have turned to MSP (Managed Service Providers) for IT efficiency and reliability. This upward trend has surged in 2020 with COVID-19.
Managed Services offer businesses peace of mind by outsourcing IT support to a service provider for a fixed, monthly fee. In return, they receive active monitoring, maintenance, (24/7) priority support, and user and device management to keep IT systems operating at peak performance.
The immediate relief offered by Managed Services is a reduction in IT costs, sometimes as much as 40%, while doubling operational efficiency, according to a CDW white paper. With fixed, monthly fees, organizations save on the capital outlay of purchasing software, hardware, and programs that additionally require regular updates and maintenance.
MSPs offer industry-specific expertise and packages that healthcare companies can scale up or down as needed, providing a breadth of service, skill, and flexibility that an in-house IT team would struggle to fulfill. This ability to delegate IT externally is crucial when 4.3 million IT jobs (including roles in healthcare) went unfulfilled last year, according to the Society of Human Resource Management.
The digitization of patient information and effectiveness of IT solutions in healthcare organizations has significantly increased the quality of patient care. As a result, they face an increased threat in cybersecurity. The right MSP targets this by maintaining the security and integrity of data to protect patient information.
If the Managed Service Provider specializes in healthcare, organizations will be able access the most updated software and programs required. They will be up-to-date on ever-evolving security and compliance challenges, a huge benefit given that healthcare is one of the most regulated sectors of the market. This becomes crucial when healthcare breaches were reported to be 50% higher between February and May 2020 than the same period in 2019, according to the Department of Health and Human Services.
While 2020 can be a complicated landscape for healthcare providers, Managed Services can alleviate some pressure by supporting the unique IT needs of organizations to ensure smooth operations.
