IT Support and Cyber Security are something that every healthcare practice needs to be productive and deliver quality patient care.  In many small or medium sized medical practices however, there are not full time IT staff to manage IT.  Frequently in those cases the duty will fall to a Practice Administrator.  This is typically one of many hats they wear.  With poor partner performance, or the wrong solutions, IT can end up taking way too much of a Practice Administrator’s time.  Here are our tips for how to avoid potential time sucks, and reclaim the time spent manag ..read more

There are a lot of challenges when managing properties across a large geography.  Managing IT support for those locations is one of them.  As your company continues to grow and acquire more properties under management, your needs for IT support across multiple locations nationwide will likely grow as well.  If you don’t have a plan this can lead to some growing pains.  Here are some tips on how to better manage IT support for multifamily residential with locations nationwide. Economics of IT Support When we talk about IT strategy for supporting multiple sites a few things a ..read more

Most healthcare professionals went to school for years to learn their craft.  They take pride in running an efficient practice and helping to provide excellent patient care.  It’s no surprise that maintaining the computer network their clinic needs to run isn’t on the top of their priority list.  Even further down the list is strategic IT planning for medical clinics.  We want to help make IT simple, so here are some of our top strategy considerations. Electronic Health Records One of the biggest strategy questions when it comes to EHR software is whether it stays on premis ..read more

Most multifamily residential management companies end up with a portfolio of properties in numerous locations regionally or nationwide.  These properties will naturally differ in many of their key characteristics.  Creating standard operating procedures on how they are to be operated will allow for easier management and movement of employees from one property to another as needed.  These SOPs should be extended to how you handle your technology to add efficiency to that part of your business.  Here we will discuss 3 advantages of technology standardization for multifamily r ..read more

Healthcare providers have a responsibility to protect patient data.  Not only because it’s the right thing to do, but also because they are regulated by HIPAA.  Having the right cyber security measures in place for your medical practice is important.  There is a lot of things that you can do, but some measures offer more protection than others.  Here are our top 7 security tips for your medical practice based on the current threat landscape and our experience providing IT support for numerous healthcare organizations. Current Threat Landscape Healthcare organizations are un ..read more

Growth by acquisition is a common strategy for senior living organizations.  Whether you build or buy, the transition for IT can be complicated.  If we’re striving to ensure continuity of care for patients and a limited downtime transition you need a solid plan.  To assist with that we have the IT discovery checklist for senior living property acquisition. Where to Start Like most projects this one needs to start with some discovery.  If you’re building a new property you should consult with your IT as part of the planning process.  This should happen early in the buil ..read more

In today’s world senior living communities are more dependent on quality internet than they ever have been before.  Many have made the move to web based EMR software, Wi-Fi enabled nurse call systems, and even offer Wi-Fi as a benefit to patients.  Senior Living communities need a solution they know will offer business continuity in the face of an outage.  Here are some notes on why it’s important, and the advantages of redundant internet for senior living facilities. Business Continuity As with all things in senior living, it really boils down to patient care.  If the inte ..read more

As senior living companies scale and add additional facilities there are some challenges.  One of those is turnover.  It’s a normal part of the business, but one that can create some headaches for your IT team.  The larger you scale the more requests you will have for new hire setups and terminations.  HIPAA requires that you can turn access on and off quickly.  You need a process and a plan.  i.t.NOW has worked in the senior living space for years.  Here are our tips on how to automate new user setup for senior living companies. Define Roles The very first p ..read more

Patient care is the priority for those working in the Senior Living space.  It’s no surprise then that there isn’t enough time left in the day to deal with the complexities of cyber security and HIPAA compliance for senior living companies. The Cost of Inaction Often there seems to be an idea of security through obscurity the prevails in the Senior Living community.  This idea that your operation is too small or not well know enough to be a target for cyber threats. This is unfortunately a fallacy.  Most cyber criminals use automated attack tools to scan the internet looking for ..read more

Phones and internet have become a utility like water or electricity.  Folks expect when they turn the tap that water will come out.  They also expect when they boot up their computer that Wi-Fi will work. When they hop on the phone they expect you’ll be able to call out.  Utilities have become so common place that folks don’t even think about their bills.  This can lead to undetected waste.  Here are 3 ideas for senior living companies on how to save on telecom costs. Time for an Audit – Senior Living companies frequently grow quickly through acquisitions. When compani ..read more