3 Benefits of Storing Your Data in the Cloud
by Erin Smith
How Cloud Practice Management Software Can Make Your Data More Useful
As consumers, more and more of the data we rely on in our everyday lives resides in the cloud – and it’s easy to see why. The cloud empowers us to access our data anywhere, anytime, with the push of a button. The associated quality of life benefits has made adoption a no-brainer for many of us.
In the workplace, however, shifting deeply rooted processes and changing to cloud-based practice management software…Click to learn more in a new window… may seem more daunting. In this post, we’ll look at 3 ways the cloud can add new value to your data, which may convince you the transition is well worth your while!
1. Gather All Practice Data in One Place
Having all your data in one place makes smart business possible. Particularly for multilocation practices, the cloud adds value by centralizing your scheduling, patient information, and practice data, and letting you access that data from anywhere and in real-time. At a glance, you can see everything that’s happening in any location at any given moment.
This accessibility prepares you to better handle unknowns. As an example, if a patient cancels an appointment with short notice, real-time schedule visibility allows you to react more quickly, adjust accordingly, and spend your team’s time more efficiently.
2. Organize All Your Data in the Same Way
Many multilocation practices are still operating different practice management software…Click to learn more in a new window… at different locations. This handcuffs their practice by keeping their locations in software silos that prevent apples-to-apples comparison of data and not allowing staff members the flexibility to easily float between practice locations.
“If I’m a restaurant owner and I have one menu at one location and another menu at a second location, I can’t compare insights,” said Mary Beth Swift, who managed dental practices of all types and sizes for nearly two decades before joining the Fuse team. “Operationally, the same is true for dental practices. You need to have all your locations operating on the same data set to draw meaningful conclusions.”
Cloud practice management not only standardizes the data set across multiple locations but also goes a step further. Because the software is in the cloud, updates are automatic and ongoing. This means all users are always using the latest, most up-to-date, and fully featured version, and there’s never a concern about one location updating before another. This makes it easier to streamline your training process and ensures a better, more consistent experience across locations.
3. Use Your Data to Find Meaning
After consolidating your data in one place and organizing it so it all works together, the next logical step is to put that data to use at a strategic level. In today’s fast-paced business environment, an information dump that requires additional in-depth analysis just doesn’t cut it. The expectation is meaningful data that you can quickly identify and act upon.
What that means is more useful insights into the key areas of your practice – where growth is occurring, where expectations aren’t being met, and how you can plan to optimize your operational efficiency. Your practice management software should be flexible enough to meet your business goals, not the other way around.
Different practices have different needs. Whether those needs are best met through on-site or cloud practice management software, Patterson Dental has a solution! Learn more about our cloud-based software Fuse…Click to learn more in a new window….
About the Author
Erin Smith, Marketing Manager with Patterson Dental is passionate about helping dental team members reach their personal, professional, and practice goals. With a deep background in software for professional services, she understands the real-life challenges that come with managing a business and team and delivering patient care. She enjoys building connections throughout the dental community and sharing her expertise on how to simplify and achieve more through the use of data and software.
Learn more…Click to learn more in a new window… about how Patterson’s Revolve Software Suite can help you track and report on KPIs, and do so much more.
