Have you ever wondered what the “cloud” is? Cloud storage is defined as “a cloud computing model in which data is stored on remote servers accessed from the Internet, or “cloud.” It is maintained, operated and managed by a cloud storage service provider on storage servers (https://www.techopedia.com/definition/26535/cloud-storage).”
Cloud storage can be very helpful in backing up and safe guarding your medical records and other important documents.
It is important to have a back up of your medical information, especially if you are going through treatment for cancer or other complex medical illnesses. In the event of computers crashing or failing or natural disasters (think Hurricane Katrina or Sandy where scores of records were lost), having a least some basic information about your diagnosis, treatments you have received, medications you are on and recent lab and radiology reports can be very helpful in putting your medical puzzle back together in the event of catastrophe. Also, if you travel, it’s important to have a least the basics with you in the event that you have a medical emergency away from your usual treatment center.
There are several ways to back up your medical data. You can save it to multiple computers (a laptop, a desktop, a home computer or a work computer). You can save it to a flash drive (or drives). These are great methods. But not in any way fool proof. If the computer(s) crash you may not be able to recover your data. Flash drives get lost all the time. Enter the cloud.
You have several options for cloud sharing; but not all of the platforms have apps available to allow you to access your information via your mobile phone (like the Apple iCloud drive). Most platforms also offer an amount of storage space for free. But it is limited. Once you have received your maximum allotment of free storage space, you will need to pay for more.
The big players in the cloud storage world are Google Drive, Dropbox, and Microsoft One Drive. Each has their pluses and minuses; but ultimately if what you are looking to do is save your important medical records and have access to them via your mobile devices, any of these platforms/apps will work. You can also choose to share these files with select persons (so someone else can have access to your records in the case of a medical emergency) as well as protect these files by password.
PC Magazine wrote a great summary of all of these apps, available here
A little work on the front end can save you loads of frustration in the long run. We never think the impossible will happen, but it often does. Take some time to get your records organized in the event of the unpredictable.
Next week, we will explore more about how to get those paper documents you are given after an appointment into the cloud.