A Swansea-based company offering heart screening to the general public is boosting awareness of the importance of heart health checks and tightening its security processes through the use of digital technology.
Cardiac Health Diagnostics provides mobile screening services on behalf of charities, communities and sports clubs across the UK. Its aim is to prevent sudden cardiac deaths, by enabling people to get free access to heart screening, with the potential to identify heart conditions that could be fatal. The screenings have already helped alert several people to potentially-fatal, undiagnosed conditions since the business started in 2015.
Superfast Business Wales opened our eyes to the benefits of cloud-based technology
After attending a free digital marketing workshop hosted by Superfast Business Wales in September 2017, and with the help of a one-on-one session with a digital adviser, the company has revamped its website and enhanced its approach to social media, resulting in greater awareness of its work and supporting the future expansion of its services.
Importantly, it also gleaned valuable insight into the benefits of automated, cloud-based backup systems for protecting sensitive patient data.
“We signed up to the workshop primarily looking for digital marketing support because, as a fairly young business, we were keen to raise our brand awareness and had just set up a website that needed reviewing,” said Shannon Stevens, director of Cardiac Health Diagnostics.
“But going through the Superfast Business Wales programme also opened our eyes to the benefits of cloud-based technology. We had been backing up files manually – every day or every other day - but soon realised that an online system would have so many advantages, and Superfast Business Wales helped us to choose a system that met our needs.”
We’ve saved time and gained peace of mind that patients’ sensitive data is protected
The company’s new cloud-based system automatically backs up patient and screening data twice daily, removing human error and the risk of data being lost or accidentally deleted.
“It’s been easy to use and the transition has been smooth,” Ms Stevens said. “We’ve saved time and gained peace of mind that patients’ sensitive data is protected.”
By adopting a cloud-based backup system, Cardiac Health Diagnostics is also well on its way to gaining Cyber Essentials Accreditation – a Government-backed scheme that helps ensure companies are protected against common cyber-attacks. It is now keen to digitise other paper-heavy areas of the business, such as medical questionnaires, consent forms and consultation notes.
“We are hoping to introduce tablets that patients and cardiologists can use to complete the necessary forms online – removing the time-consuming process of scanning paper forms and ensuring data is immediately saved and backed up.”
Social media has also led to repeat business
The firm has also developed a keener understanding of the various social media platforms and the benefits they may bring to expanding its success.
“We are on Twitter and use it regularly to support charities, as well as other clients we work with to deliver programmes. This is something that has led to repeat business and also enabled us to hear positive stories directly from people who have benefited from our screening programmes,” Ms Stevens said.
“As a start-up business we certainly wouldn’t have had the money to put into digital marketing advice or a professional website review, so the opportunity to access this for free and share experiences with other businesses at the workshop is certainly something I’d recommend to other start-ups.”