Although many healthcare organizations were slow to make the move, migrating to the cloud brings the benefits of agility, resiliency and performance to healthcare organizations. However, the cloud also comes with several challenges, including how to manage security and governance.
A hybrid cloud mixes on-premises infrastructure, private cloud services and a public cloud such as Amazon Web Services, Google Cloud or Microsoft Azure.
Some healthcare organizations use a multicloud approach for multiple needs. For example, they may use Azure for office work, IBM Cloud for back-office tasks and Google Cloud for artificial intelligence, says Rohit Badlaney, general manager for cloud industry platforms and solutions at IBM.
Using multiple clouds can bring cost savings because of the business model of renting out server space, explains John Moore III, managing partner at Chilmark Research.
“[Health systems] are paying for processing time in a lot of these cloud contracts that they are entering into,” he says.
When thinking about whether to move to a cloud platform, consider the total cost of ownership. Some cloud providers supply a TCO calculator to help calculate these costs.
Click below to learn how to optimize healthcare’s connection to the hybrid cloud.