While organizations are mostly focused on implementing cybersecurity solutions like awareness training, antivirus firewalls, and VPN connections to keep themselves protected in this age of ever-evolving technology, the same level of attention is not directed toward adopting tools that would optimize operations. Our guest today believes that having a quality information management system is crucial, as it not only helps protect customer data but also automates time-consuming tasks.
To discuss how the innovations in technology can enhance the operations at veterinary clinics, we sat down with Charles MacBain, the CEO of Nordhealth – a company providing information management systems that free veterinary and therapy professionals from doing administrative work, so they can focus on caring for their patients.
Let’s go back to the very beginning of Nordhealth. What has your journey been like?
Nordhealth entered the Veterinary Practice Information Management System (PIMS) market in 2005. Since then, we have expanded to over 30 countries where we serve over 20,000 veterinary professionals across 1750+ veterinary clinics and hospitals.
Can you introduce us to your veterinary practice management software? What are its key features?
Provet Cloud is a modular, cloud-based PIMS built to help veterinary professionals save time on administrative tasks and repetitive work so they can focus on delivering great care and delighting their clients. Key features include a full EMR, online booking, integrated payments, agenda, and shift planning, templates, automated reminders, client communications, and automated invoicing.
What would you consider some of the most serious issues that the veterinary and healthcare industries are facing today?
There are a few. The first is the ability to recruit and retain talent. Veterinary clinics are high-stress environments, and with the increase in pet adoptions globally there is too much work and not enough time in the day to get everything done. This, in turn, affects work/life balance, causes burnout, and leads to high turnover in the industry. Another is running a business. Veterinarians went to school to care for animals, and proper business & management training has been historically hard to come by.
How did the recent global events affect your field of work? Were there any new challenges you had to adapt to?
The Covid pandemic was an accelerator for digital transformation and also created huge stress on the veterinary community as increases in pet ownership and health needs did not match the capacity of veterinary professionals available.
In your opinion, what are some of the worst habits that can put not only the company’s workload but also their customer data at risk?
Server-based software is more prone to data leaks and data breaches than modern cloud software. By clicking the wrong link in an email, we have seen clinics with server-based systems have their data held hostage by malicious parties. There are also clinics that have resisted going digital, and still keep health records on physical paper – something that is prone to mistakes, can be lost/damaged, and is difficult to scale when you have an increase in clients.
What other aspects of our lives do you hope to see automated or enhanced by technology in the near future?
I hope to see better transparency of medical records and easily accessible material that would help pet owners learn how to care for their animals on an everyday basis.
In this age of ever-evolving technology, what do you think are the key security practices both businesses and individuals should adopt?
In my opinion, two-factor authentication and IP address location-based security protocols are some of the most important measures you can have.
Since health is your main field of focus, how do you think the wellbeing industry is going to evolve in the upcoming years?
We should see a significant shift to the cloud, especially in the animal-health industry. I also think there will be more attention placed on the importance of data security and data sovereignty.
Would you like to share what’s next for Provet Cloud?
We are going to continue to build features that help veterinary professionals save time on their most common workflows through automation and seamless integration.
We will also enhance the tools for stronger veterinarian/client relationships, like two-way messaging, telehealth options, access to pet records at any time, and other transparency features. And finally, focus on simplifying UX/UI and onboarding process so implementation takes hours instead of days, while competency in using the system increases.
This article originaly appeared in Cybernews here.
