Many Health Care Professionals we contact express dismay with their IT Service Provider. They express concern about endless bills and a lack of partnership with their Provider. The reason for this is that most Service Providers do not specialize in the medical field and they bill clients on a Time and Materials basis.

The practice wants the problem fixed as quickly as possible to save money and the consultant is able to bill more the longer the call takes and the greater the frequency of problems. This conflict of interest does not work in the best interest of the practice.

This approach is reactive, the consultant is rushed to complete the work and the practice usually does not allocate time for the consultant to properly manage the Network. This Time and Materials Service Model is Broken.

There is hope. By entering into a relationship with a Service Provider who has expertise in the Medical field and who does not charge by the hour results in a better managed network with much fewer problems.

A new breed of IT Service companies has developed over the last few years where the focus is on strategically managing IT Resources for the medical community. As a medical professional it is in your interest to identify providers who both specialize in providing IT services to the medical community and who will take ownership of your entire IT system. These service companies will offer a set fee per month for IT support services (including help desk) and will understand the unique requirements of the medical community.

An IT provider in the medical field must have an understanding of EMR and PM systems, must understand HIPAA and how HIPAA affects your IT systems and how a medical office functions.

Something for Medical Professionals to consider.

Mike Haworth

President

Binatech System Solutions

Buffalo, NY