From a health emergency to a full evacuation, allied health clinics are prepared for almost any eventuality. But what about an IT disaster? This is where many providers trip and fall. When human safety is so often at stake, technology might feel like the least of your concerns. Unfortunately, this attitude could come back to bite you.
The truth is, your IT needs to be protected just as carefully as any other part of your practice. You don’t have to choose between patients and technology – instead, you should prioritise both. But why? What is disaster and recovery planning, and why is it so crucial for your success?
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Disaster Recovery Plans: What Are They, and Why Do You Need One?
Sometimes referred to as an incident response or business continuity plan, your disaster recovery strategy outlines the processes you will enact during an emergency. The goal here is to ensure business operations return to normal quickly, and with as little damage as possible. Strong disaster recovery processes will help prevent:
Data loss
Major security breaches
Extended downtime
Reputational harm
Why Disaster Recovery Planning is Crucial
If your clinic is on the smaller side, you might be wondering what the point of a disaster recovery plan is. After all, you’re not a large hospital, where thousands of lives rely on strong continuity. But to an extent, your size is part of the problem. Bigger organisations already know how important incident response is, and have planned accordingly. Smaller practices often underestimate this, and are woefully underprepared when an emergency does occur.
This, by the way, is the operative word. It’s not about if you will experience an incident, but when. It will happen. This is a truth you must come to terms with. Eventually, no matter how hard you try to avoid it, a fire will break out, a hardware failure will wipe your data, or a cyber-attack will shut down your systems. You don’t get to control whether you experience an emergency. But you can be ready for them.
The Building Blocks of an Effective Recovery Plan
When planning disaster recovery, here are the crucial elements you must consider:
1. Your Risk Factors
Your first move is to figure out what could go wrong. Consider the types of disaster you could experience, and determine how likely each is to become reality. The goal here isn’t to scare yourself. To build an effective defence, you need to know what you’re up against.
2. Your Inventory
Your first move is to figure out what could go wrong. Consider the types of disaster you could experience, and determine how likely each is to become reality. The goal here isn’t to scare yourself. To build an effective defence, you need to know what you’re up against.
3. Backup and Restore Procedures
Data backup procedures should be front and centre when planning disaster recovery. Here, you’ll need to set two important metrics:
- Your recovery time objective (RTO): The acceptable amount of time systems can be offline for.
- Your recovery point objective (RPO): The amount of data it would be acceptable to lose.
Base your backup and recovery policies on these metrics. You should also follow the 3-2-1 rule: three copies of all critical data, on two different mediums, one of which is offsite. There’s a reason everyone recommends this strategy. Following the 3-2-1 rule, in accordance with your established KPIs, makes it almost impossible to lose your data.
One more piece of advice: Test your backups. It’s been estimated that up to half of all backups fail. More worryingly, 60% of small businesses who lose data close within six months. Don’t just rely on your technology to work. Make sure
4. Roles and Responsibilities
Choose a disaster recovery team. Who is responsible when something goes wrong? What tasks should each person complete? Who is accountable for your plan’s success or failure? Once you’ve established these elements, take steps to ensure that everyone understands their role. Post your plan where it can be easily accessed, even if your technology is offline.
You should also take this time to establish communication procedures. If your main method of communication isn’t working, what’s the backup plan? Who should explain the situation to important personnel, when, and how? These are important considerations.
5. The Testing Phase
Just like you run fire drills, you need to practice your disaster recovery plan. Otherwise, it could all fall apart within minutes during a real emergency. Human beings panic and make mistakes. If you rehearse your plan until it becomes muscle memory, this is less likely to happen.
Practice sessions will also make any problems with the plan immediately apparent. If your team keeps tripping at one particular stage, that might mean it isn’t effective. Alterations now will prevent nasty surprises later.
Finally, remember that your disaster recovery plan is a living document. As your business changes, the plan needs to adjust with it. Review your strategies at least once a year to ensure they remain effective.
Disaster Recovery Plan Example
To help solidify what you’ve learned, here’s a quick disaster recovery plan example:
Imagine a physiotherapy clinic in Melbourne. One morning, their server fails due to a software bug. No warning is given, it just shuts down. Luckily, this practice had a disaster recovery plan. They respond to the failure by:
- Activating offsite backups
- Communicating to patients that there might be delays, but systems will be back online soon
- Asking their managed service provider (MSP) to remotely address the issue
By mid-afternoon, the problem has been solved and they’re able to return to normal operations. Without this quick response, work could have been halted for days. Patients would have no idea what was happening, and might have publicly complained. By planning ahead, this clinic has saved themselves a lot of trouble.
Disaster Recovery FAQs
Is cloud backup enough for disaster recovery?
Cloud backups are a great start, but you should never rely on just one backup. The cloud can fail, just like any other system. As a rule of thumb, you should always have three backups, spread across different media types.
How often should we update our disaster recovery plan?
Your plan should be reviewed and tested at least once per year. Every 6 months would be better, if you have the resources available. You should also update the plan anytime a major change occurs within your organisation.
Can an MSP help me create a disaster recovery plan?
Absolutely. Many MSPs provide specialised backup and disaster recovery services, which can vastly simplify the process. Failing that, almost every MSP offers IT support and cyber security services.
What’s the difference between a backup plan and a disaster recovery plan?
A backup plan focuses on storing data safely, while disaster recovery encompasses the whole process of returning to normal operations. You should consider both.
Are disaster recovery plan templates available?
Yes, a variety of disaster recovery plan examples and templates can be found online.
Prepare Now to Protect Your Clinic’s Future
Disaster recovery planning isn’t about expecting the worst, but ensuring the best possible outcome no matter what challenges you face. With the right backup strategy, communication channels, and preparation, you can ensure a swift recovery in any disaster scenario. This will not only provide peace of mind in the present, but ensure your success long into the future.
As experts in cyber security, the team at Vandros knows exactly what it takes to protect your clinic. We’re ready to help you prepare for the worst-case scenario, prevent attacks, and recover faster when they do occur. If you’re interested in learning more, use our cost calculator to get a rough price estimate.