Given Google’s emphasis on security, efficiency, and productivity, it’s no wonder Workspace is one of the most popular office suites for healthcare providers.
Used by the National Institute for Health Research, Roche, the Cambridge Health Alliance, and other leading names in the medical field, the Google ecosystem offers flexible and secure cloud-based applications that health teams need to improve patient care, cut costs, and boost collaboration.
The benefits of Google Workspace for Healthcare providers
Security - Is Google Workspace HIPAA Compliant?
The short answer is yes - Google Workspace is fully compliant with the Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act (HIPAA).
Workspace users subject to HIPAA must sign a Business Associate Agreement (BAA) with Google if they are handling Protected Health Information. Reviewing and accepting your organization’s BAA is easy, but can only be done by your Workspace administrator.
- Sign into your administrator account
- From the Menu, go to Account, then Account Settings, and Legal and compliance
- Navigate through to Security and Privacy Additional Terms and click Google Workspace/Cloud Identity HIPAA Business Associate Amendment
- Click Review and Accept and answer three security questions to access your BAA, then click OK to accept it
Google has also provided a HIPAA Implementation Guide for Workspace users covered by the legislation, outlining exactly how to use Google’s applications with HIPAA and the security measures taken to ensure compliance.Most Google Workspace applications are covered by a HIPAA BAA, including Gmail, Docs, Sheets, Slides, Forms, Meet, and Groups.
Coordination and collaboration
It’s easy for fragmented health teams to fall into the trap of working in silos and failing to communicate with each other. Workspace is ideal for keeping employees connected, providing a highly integrated cloud-based platform that can be securely accessed from anywhere, and any device.
Controls and permissions allow users to set rules around who can access, edit, and share files - ensuring cross-collaboration with the staff who need to be on a task, while protecting sensitive information from being widely accessible.
This focus on connectivity doesn’t just benefit healthcare workers, it’s also highly convenient for clients, partners, and patients who can be kept informed in real-time with direct access to their point of care.
Cost-efficiencies
Both private and public healthcare organizations are coming under increasing strain as more pressure is placed on their budgets in the wake of the pandemic. When it comes to finding savings, Google is a more cost-effective solution than many legacy systems thanks to its superior ability to streamline and digitize labor-intensive manual tasks.
Data entry, meetings with remote teams, document sharing - all are done securely and speedily thanks to Google’s integrated suite. These streamlined workflows are great for under-resourced teams who need to make the most of their time and budget, providing efficiencies throughout the entire patient journey. Hunterdon Healthcare reduced their costs by $1.3 million over 3 years simply by switching to Google Workspace.
To find out more about how Google Workspace can transform your healthcare organization, contact UpCurve Cloud’s team of cloud technology experts. We’re highly experienced in working with clients from all sectors of the healthcare industry, guiding them through the adoption, integration, and use of Google’s ecosystem of applications. We understand the unique needs of healthcare providers, and how we can meet those needs with our expertise. Get in touch today to schedule a consultation or find out more!
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