On-Site PACS vs. Cloud PACS

A reliable and scalable picture archiving and communication system (PACS) is increasingly important for facilities accommodating higher volumes of digital medical images for advanced care. If your practice needs to invest in a new solution, understanding the differences between on-site versus cloud PACS is key to making an informed decision and ensuring compatibility with your existing imaging devices and electronic health records (EHRs).

The right PACS can help your team make faster, more accurate diagnoses and judgments, supporting more advanced patient care. Explore the key distinctions and considerations for a local, on-premise PACS compared to cloud solutions.

What Is the Difference Between Cloud and On-Premise PACS?

The primary difference between a local and cloud PACS is their technology infrastructure. Remote servers managed by third-party providers typically host cloud options. They require an internet connection but limited or no on-site hardware, while an on-premise PACS requires a provider to install local servers and physical hardware at your facility. Below are essential comparisons when choosing a local versus cloud PACS for your practice.

Pricing

Cost is among the most important factors when deciding on a PACS. On-premise solutions tend to require a higher initial investment. Your facility typically pays for the system's hardware, installation and software licenses. Physical devices will need ongoing maintenance and upgrades to ensure peak performance.

Your facility must also pay IT staff — in-house or a third party — to monitor and manage your devices. A local PACS tends to have higher ownership costs because of these ongoing expenses.

A cloud PACS often has lower upfront and ongoing costs than on-site options. These systems typically operate on a subscription model, so your practice pays annual or monthly fees encompassing user access, data storage and additional software features. 

Scalability

Scalability is a huge advantage of a cloud PACS. These remote systems allow users to seamlessly increase or decrease their services or storage requirements as needed, making them ideal for practices with growing imaging demands or patient bases. Providers often extend tiered PACS plans to accommodate your facility's size and expansion. 

An on-premise PACS often lacks scalability because of its physical infrastructure. If your facility has an influx of imaging needs, you may need to invest in additional hardware upgrades — and this expansion can be expensive, especially if it requires system downtime that interferes with your practice's operations. However, a local PACS can suit a facility with predictable patient growth and imaging demands. 

Performance

A key benefit of having an on-premise PACS is consistent performance. Since these systems operate on local servers and networks, your health care facility's IT support team tackles troubleshooting and maintenance in-house if problems arise. Your facility can implement measures to support reliability and uptime if a hardware failure occurs. 

If you work with a cloud-based PACS, your provider will typically handle all routine software updates and ongoing maintenance to ensure the system works effectively. Local system performance also relies on your practice's internet speed and network bandwidth. Issues with your Wi-Fi connection or network latency can potentially impact your PACS's performance. Providers typically provide built-in failover systems to help ensure PACS reliability in case of an outage, failure or other issue.

Disaster Recovery and Data Security

Health care organizations must prioritize robust data security measures because they are a top target of cybercriminals looking to exploit patient and industry data. Because of these threats, many cloud-based PACS solutions have extensive cybersecurity protocols and solutions, including data encryption and automatic backups. 

Cloud providers often have experts monitoring activity to mitigate risks and protect your system. They also include built-in disaster recovery solutions and back up your medical imaging data on off-site servers to enhance security. Extensive measures are essential to comply with patient data laws, such as HIPAA regulations.

Disaster recovery can be more complex with an on-site PACS. Your facility may need to invest in backup systems and redundancy solutions, and an in-house IT team must address data security internally to ensure data protection and compliance.

Maintenance

An on-premise PACS solution will require your health care facility's IT team to handle ongoing maintenance tasks, such as:

• Software updates.
• System troubleshooting.
• Hardware repairs.

Your team needs to strategically schedule and perform manual updates to minimize potential system disruptions and downtime. Ongoing maintenance can require extensive resources to invest in hardware upgrades or repairs and ensure your IT staff has the necessary training to tackle these needs. 

A cloud PACS is often easier to maintain. Your provider will likely handle maintenance tasks, including security patches and software updates, for your facility. Your in-house IT team will have fewer responsibilities. Cloud-based systems also support automatic updates to equip your PACS with the latest features. 

User Experience

Users can typically access a cloud-based PACS from any authorized device with internet connectivity, enabling your staff to work remotely. Providers often offer comprehensive training and support resources to help users navigate the interface and adapt to the system.

On-site PACS generally limit access to devices on the local network, making accessing imaging data remotely more complicated. Your team will likely need extensive internal training to work with the system successfully. Without a cloud provider, your facility may have limited support to help resolve confusion and provide additional expertise. 

Integration With Existing Systems 

Integration is a crucial consideration when deciding between an on-site and cloud PACS. With on-premise solutions, your facility controls and handles integration with local systems, like your EHRs. 

Compatibility issues with your current technologies are possible, and PACS may require custom integrations that can increase overall costs and require more time. 

A cloud-based PACS often makes integration easy. These systems typically offer various application programming interfaces (APIs) that enable streamlined workflows with your current systems. Cloud solutions are flexible and can support new integrations as your facility's imaging needs evolve.

Both PACS options offer various advantages. Cloud-based systems are often favorable for increasing convenience and supporting streamlined workflows so your practice can deliver enhanced and timely imaging services.

Book a Demo of the ImageGrid^™ PACS From Candelis Today

Are you still contemplating whether an on-premise or cloud PACS is right for your practice? Candelis can help. We offer cost-effective ImageGrid^™ PACS products that integrate with your current EHRs to streamline workflows and save time. 

Our end-to-end PACS solutions allow your team to access patient records easily and quickly. The setup is simple, giving your practice a fully featured system with scalable Digital Imaging and Communications in Medicine (DICOM) storage, multi-operation support and web-based system administration to optimize your daily imaging processes. 

Book a free demo from Candelis to learn more about our PACS solutions today.