What happened during the outage?
The outage occurred on June 22, 2021, and lasted for several hours. Change Healthcare has not provided an official statement about the cause of the outage, but some users have reported that it was caused by a database issue. During the outage, many of Change Healthcare’s products and services were unavailable, including its electronic health records (EHR) systems, revenue cycle management (RCM) solutions, and analytics tools. Customers were unable to access patient records, schedule appointments, process insurance claims, or perform any other essential tasks. This caused major disruptions in healthcare facilities across the country, and many healthcare providers were forced to rely on manual processes to keep their operations running.How did the outage impact the healthcare industry?
The outage had a significant impact on the healthcare industry. Without access to critical healthcare technology, many healthcare facilities were unable to deliver quality patient care. For example, doctors and nurses were unable to access patient records, which made it difficult to diagnose and treat patients effectively. Many healthcare providers were also unable to process insurance claims, which made it difficult for them to get paid for their services. The outage also highlighted the need for backup systems and disaster recovery plans. Many healthcare facilities were unprepared for the outage and did not have backup systems in place to keep their operations running. This led to significant disruptions and delays in patient care.
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What can healthcare providers do to prevent similar outages in the future?
Healthcare providers should take steps to prevent similar outages in the future. This includes implementing backup systems and disaster recovery plans, conducting regular testing of these systems, and investing in high-quality healthcare technology solutions. Providers should also choose healthcare technology vendors that prioritize system stability and uptime. They should look for vendors that have a track record of reliability and offer robust support services. Ultimately, healthcare providers need to understand that downtime is not an option in the healthcare industry. They need to take proactive steps to prevent outages and ensure that their operations can continue running smoothly, even in the event of a technology failure.
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