Although many healthcare organizations have failed to recognize it, cloud backup could actually be the most effective format of data storage available to them.

Chris Witt, president of IT provider Wake Technology Services, said in a recent interview with eWeek that healthcare providers looking to meet meaningful use standards for electronic medical records technology should turn to external cloud backup providers. With a cloud service provider managing IT services, healthcare providers can be sure all information is backed up constantly, Witt said.

"The appropriately selected cloud provider can provide the near 100 percent availability that's required for a patient care application," Witt told eWeek. "So that's how a healthcare organization can potentially use the cloud and justify the use of a cloud when delivering all of these different applications that are bundled under what we call meaningful use - whether it be health record, medicine administration, things like that. They're all very important components."

Although these benefits are at their disposal, many healthcare providers have shied away from the cloud. Responding to a survey conducted by CDW in May, 53 percent of healthcare IT professionals said management at their employers do not trust the cloud for data storage.