TRENDS
The first question you might ask as a non-technical professional is, "Can I become 'IT-savvy' without years of training?" The short answer is no. But you can learn how to utilize the resources already within your reach to maximize your IT prowess. You can learn to ask the right type of questions, make the best possible decisions and have a strong impact on your facility, all without getting a computer science degree.
Four Questions to Ask Yourself
Start by reviewing your environment. There are questions you need to ask yourself and your board prior to engaging an IT provider:
- What are our current technology needs? Simply put, start with what you have today. Do you have enough servers, computers, printers, scanners, phones, networking, etc., to effectively run your operations? How old are they? Are they under warranty? If you haven't done so already, start by taking an inventory of all of your technology including make, model, serial numbers, service tags and to whom they are assigned. You will also want to track the purchase date and warranty expiration date for all equipment. Luckily, if you don't have this handy, this can be created fairly quickly. Most computer companies give you the ability to find out a computer's age and warranty from their Web site. You will also want to track all of your software. However, there are a few freely available software tools online for this task. Try searching online for Belarc Advisor, a free software tool for building a detailed profile of your installed hardware and software on each system. Once you survey all of your equipment, evaluate the "health" of your systems. Are they all up-to-date with software patches? Do they have enough memory? Are they all working correctly?
- What is our facility's five-year plan for technology? Now that you have a sense of where you are today, where are you headed? How often do you plan to upgrade your systems? Did you know you need to upgrade your systems? Is your facility or its needs expanding in the future? You should plan to upgrade or replace your computers and servers every 3-5 years. And that's if they last that long. High-use systems, such as a computer used by the nursing staff every day, might only last 2-3 years.
- How much IT support do we use currently and is it enough? Rather than look at your IT costs first, start with how much time your IT provider spends on-site or working on your systems. When you have an issue, is it resolved quickly? Do you feel like they respond adequately and provide you with appropriate resources? How would you rate the quality of the IT support you receive? Once you have a sense of service quality, take a look at your expenses. Do you find you're running out of support hours each month? Or do you pay by the hour/issue? Do you feel like you're spending more each month but getting less in return? This could be an issue with your provider, but it could also be a sign that you are attacking your issues individually rather than holistically. If all of your systems are five years old, expect your IT support costs to grow monthly.
- How much can we "self-support" our IT issues? Many facilities have a "super user" who is able to solve issues that might typically fall to your IT support company. While this can be a great solution to everyday problems, what happens if that person leaves? And who's covering their job while they're fixing technical issues? There is always a real cost to self-support, even if it is a "sunk cost." Every moment spent dealing with technical issues is a moment taken away from primary job tasks. Unless you have a portion of someone's position dedicated to IT support, you should replace the self-support with support from your IT provider.
Six Questions to Ask Your IT Provider
Now that you have a better sense of your IT infrastructure, it's time to turn your attention to your IT provider.
- Based on our internal review, how well do you believe we are meeting our needs and goals? Start your conversation with your current or potential IT provider by reviewing your existing systems. Focus on showing your provider how seriously you take this issue and how committed you are to finding the right answers, not whether or not you are technically-savvy. Keep an open and engaged mind and don't be afraid to ask questions.
- What experience do you have supporting ASCs and other medical facilities? While your provider may have extensive experience with other businesses, there are unique challenges to supporting medical facilities from an IT perspective. For instance, if your provider has little understanding of how HIPAA affects their work for you, you might want to look elsewhere for support. You want to make sure your provider is equipped to meet your specific needs as an ASC. If it is struggling to resolve your issues, the clock is probably still running. It's better to pay an experienced tech a higher rate to solve an issue quickly than end up paying your local provider a lower rate for something that will take them much more time overall.
- Can you support my applications or just my hardware and operating system? There is a huge difference between supporting your applications and supporting the servers on which the applications live. When your clinical applications aren't working correctly, you need a provider who can help you diagnose the problem fully. If they only support "the box" (servers), there's little chance they can fully resolve your issue without contacting your software provider first - and costing you more money.
- How large and experienced is your team? Let's face it: Sometimes the best techs in the world don't have all of the answers. You want to know what resources your provider can call upon to meet your needs. If it is a two-person shop, it may not be available when you need them. But even the largest companies may struggle to meet your needs if they constantly send out new techs to support you. Look for a balance of size and experience that meets your needs.
- Who on your team will work with us to define our needs and verify they are met? Talk with your provider about your need for a "technology advisor" who can help you to make good technology decisions both now and in the future. Your provider should be willing and able to meet with you annually to review your technology needs and goals, how well it meets your expectations and requirements, and what it can do to improve in the coming year. Be sure to ask your provider about its service level agreement (SLA). This is the written commitment to you for how quickly and completely it will meet your needs. If you need around-the-clock support with a minimum response time of 30 minutes, your needs should be documented in the SLA.
- Can you provide us with three references from ASCs or medical facilities? Just like with a potential hire, references are a time-consuming yet critical step in your process. While few companies are likely to send you a bad reference, it does happen. Make sure to ask the references how well the provider helped to define and meet their needs. Ask about response times, overall quality of support, and how satisfied they are as a client. Ask also about the provider's understanding of the specific issues related to medical facilities.
Stephen Campbell, COO, Mavicor
Mavicor, www.mavicor.com, is a leading ASC technology management company