Animal Health Solutions

37 Q3 2020 | Animal Health Solutions Increase security It's unfortunate but true: hackers never stop looking for ways to get at your data. If they can, they'll steal it for personal gain. Failing that, they'll simply wreak havoc with it, planting malware to corrupt files and prompt system failure. In response, software is constantly changing to fill gaps in security or patch vulnerable spots that hackers have uncovered since the last update. By updating your software whenever prompted, you ensure you're protecting your data, and your clients' data, from exposure to potential hacking risks. Enjoy better performance Technology today is advancing at a rapid pace, and no one wants to be left behind. Regular updates ensure unexpected flaws are fixed, or debugged, and that your practice has the latest and greatest software with the most efficient performance and time-saving enhancements. When your software is performing at its highest level, everyone can complete their tasks more quickly and efficiently—and with less stress. If you've ever wondered why another practice with the same software as yours seems to be able to do more and has useful features you don't have, you should check to see if you've missed updating to the latest software version. Save time and money Updating to the newest version of software ensures you have all the latest capabilities and enhancements your software has to offer. That often means ways to save money, with more efficient workflows, and timesaving workarounds. Conversely, if your software is not up to date, you can experience sluggish performance. Looking up a test result or processing a customer's payment can take minutes rather than seconds—precious minutes that really add up when you and your staff already don't have any to spare. Of course, your customers are busy, too, and no one wants to leave them in an exam room or waiting in line to check in or out with an anxious or sick pet any longer than necessary. Get the full value of your investment Part of what you pay for when you choose a software is the understanding that it will continue to improve. And most exciting, innovative features require a software update. Those improvements and new features are passed on to you through updates with each new software version. To be sure you experience the full value of your investment, it's important to accept each update in a timely manner so that you can take advantage of the improvements it provides right away. For some practices, the barriers to change or concerns over potential disruption are easily outweighed by the benefits that updates may provide. Decrease stress Regular updates reduce the stress of change on staff members, and many updates require relatively little effort to implement. Those that do require planned downtime can be completed efficiently and with little stress when you've been keeping up. But if you skip updates, your system may not be able to handle the next one that comes along. Each new version assumes you have updated to the one before and usually depends on that version to work well. Skipping version updates can compound problems, cause unnecessary downtime, and expense and create a larger learning curve for staff members when you do make the update. This leads to more stress for you and your staff. And when your staff is stressed and confused and pet owners are left waiting, it can negatively impact their confidence in your practice. Avoid obsolete software (and hardware) At times, software or hardware can become so outdated that very few users depend on it anymore and the provider decides not to support it. So, everything might work just fine for a long time, until it doesn't. If software updates are neglected long enough, you might not realize how outdated your software—or hardware—has become. Then, should a problem arise, your software will be too outdated to "fix," and the solution will be more costly and time-consuming, such as installing new software and/or hardware and retraining your staff. Consistently installing the latest version of your current software will prevent this kind of unexpected—and unwelcome—surprise. Postponing an update, ignoring it, or forgetting about it only prevents you and your staff from enjoying the advantages of a new and improved software version.

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