I was rummaging through my attic the other day when I came across the weathered copy of The Three Little Pigs that I used to read to my young son before bedtime every night. I fondly reminisced about the days when Alex – who is now living on his own and seeking a career in Manhattan – would sit on my lap, clinging to every huff and puff in the book.
As I thumbed through the tattered and fading pages, I chuckled, realizing that it was the first DR manual! The first pig was safe in his straw house until, with one huff, the house collapsed – the first fail. So the smart pig went to his backup plan: his brother’s stick house. But, like the first, the stick house couldn’t withstand the wolf’s hot air.
What saved the pigs from being that night’s house special? It was, of course, the sturdier, well designed, brick fortress that the third brother built in a separate location. The third pig had the most important element of the DR plan – a disaster recovery site.
In healthcare – where patients are the first priority – creating a separate DR site is essential. Unfortunately, many hospitals cannot afford the cost of a complete redundant fail over site.
That’s where the SaaS model proves to be a unique opportunity. With it hospitals can run software that is offsite from their location, which is often essential in a disaster situation. One of MediClick’s clients – a hospital north of New Orleans – experienced something like this during the devastation following Hurricane Katrina.
Communication was down at the hospital and its surrounding community. Resources were limited, but the need for emergency care was greater than ever. MediClick, as this hospital’s materials management software vendor, was able to use the SaaS model to order supplies for them from a separate location. We made sure emergency medical supplies were delivered to the disaster area when time was of the essence. Teamwork, the SaaS model and a solid DR plan benefited thousands of people during the long process of recovery.
MediClick was glad that we were able to help keep them
functioning using SaaS. Sadly, choosing a SaaS vendor may not be enough to save
you. Not all SaaS vendors have their own disaster recovery plan. If your organization
uses a SaaS provider, you should inquire about both their DR plan and site.
Review their SAS70 Type 2 audit report to see if the DR site is mentioned in
the report.
As a vice president at MediClick, customers have asked me
many times for a copy of MediClick’s DR guide. But any decent DR guide has
access codes, private phone numbers of employees and system passwords. This
information cannot be shared with anyone outside the MediClick offices. That’s
why we make it a point to document our DR plan in our SAS70 report. Be sure to
check to make sure your SaaS vendor does the same.
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