We've posted this question before here in this blog and I think it's important to revisit every now and then- what does cloud based mean?  You hear it all the time and it sounds really cool.  IBM has those futuristic commercials about cloud computing, Apple has the iCloud -our heads are literally in the clouds every day!  So as a provider agency that does things on paper or spreadsheets and Microsoft word, what does cloud based mean to you?

If you are like most provider agencies, your work is not done in a single location. You are providing home and community based services (HCBS), which means you have multiple locations and staff that is running around to and from those locations. As MediSked Connect is a hosted platform, it can only be accessed via an internet connection. Through what device your staff accesses an Agency Management Platform has become the most recent question we get asked.

It wasn’t so long ago that the only way to get on the internet was through a PC, Mac, or laptop via an Ethernet connection (cord plugged into your computer) or through a wireless connection. Today, there many more ways to connect to the internet through mobile devices such as smart phones and iPads or tablets. The infographic below is interesting in that it illustrates just how common smart phones have become – over 91.4 million smartphones are owned in the US alone. The use of mobile broadband as a way to access the internet has been a leading catalyst in this growth – you no longer need that wireless internet connection that your laptop 5 years ago relied on. As you might imagine, this technology and trend will only grow.

At MediSked, this trend is exciting and very positive. Over the last couple of years we have seen customers begin to try different devices that truly bring technology to the point of care. And while we are not in the “device” business, we have created a mobile edition that is simple and easy to use with any of these devices. So, the answer to this question is an emphatic YES. Here are the mobile devices of today that our customers are using MediSked.

• Net Books – Net books are essentially light weight laptops. They don’t have the memory and storage capacity of a standard laptop but if you are just using it to hop on the internet, net books are an affordable and efficient device to buy. Our customers like net books because, compare to tablets and smart phones, they are relatively cheap to buy in bulk. Tablets are becoming more in demand and the netbook market is not as robust as it was a couple of years ago. So prices have dropped which is good for you. The other nice feature about a net book is that it has a real keyboard, which a smart phone and tablet do not have. So it is much easier to type service notes, messages, etc on a net book than it is on a tablet and especially on a smart phone.

• Tablet (including iPad) – Right now tablets are viable options for provider agencies and their staff that travels. And in terms of brands, the iPad dominates the market – accounting for 62.5% of global shipments this year, according to IDC. The downside to a tablet is it’s very expensive and to provide one to every staff member would be expensive and the risk of them going lost or missing is probably pretty high. Customers that have had success with them have found that limited use by certain staff tends to work better, most notable nursing or clinical staff. They can pull up records easily and view and record vital information.

• Smartphones – As the infographic points out, smart phone ownership and usage is large and growing. If staff members have smart phones to begin with, they can use them to record there notes and to check in and out of shifts. Typically, the biggest questions that come up with using smartphones is that staff are using a personal phone for business- how is that reimbursed and what about the staff that doesn’t have smart phones. These are questions that are probably going to come up if you are looking at this option, so be prepared to have a plan in place that makes the most sense for your agency.

Overall, the options and flexibility on how to access the internet have grown tremendously over the last five or six years. Providing your staff with access to the information they need in order to do their job and satisfy the compliance requirements of your agency is vitally important. Keep that in mind when you are looking for a solution and be sure that the solution does work with mobile devices as usage will continue to grow.

 

The following infographic is courtesy of? http://ansonalex.com/infographics/smartphone-usage-statistics-2012-infographic/