Imagine walking into your orthopedic clinic and finding that every aspect of your care—from scheduling to surgery to follow-up—is seamlessly connected and tailored to your needs. For most practices, this level of digital transformation still feels out of reach.
Across U.S. health systems, many organizations are operating under tight or declining margins even as they face rising technology demands. Within that environment, providers are rethinking how to modernize efficiently.
For OrthoCarolina, a physician-owned practice with more than 300 practitioners and over one million patient visits annually across North and South Carolina, modernization was no longer optional. Facing growing pressure to deliver better outcomes with fewer resources, the team set out to transform its operations and meet rising patient expectations through improved IT systems and managed cloud services.
Learn more about our journey with OrthoCarolina on our Client Stories page.
Building a Foundation for Digital Transformation
Leading that transformation effort is Neil Stein, OrthoCarolina’s Senior Vice President of Technology Services. Tasked with modernizing operations and improving the patient experience, Stein and his team saw technology as the key to scaling care and efficiency. Achieving those goals, however, required the right partner, and not just new tools.
Early collaborations with Presidio, a leader in managed cloud solutions for clinics, showed what was possible through genuine partnership. Drawing on deep healthcare IT expertise, Presidio helped OrthoCarolina design a modernization strategy that would serve as the blueprint for a fully managed technology transformation
Presidio’s Role: Enabling Advanced Technology
Working side-by-side with OrthoCarolina’s leadership and IT teams, Presidio helped transform orthopedic care operations through a series of strategic initiatives:
- Workflow analysis to identify cost savings and efficiency opportunities
- Full data center migration to Microsoft Azure and Azure VMware Service (AVS)
- Backend management and technical expertise to streamline operations
This cloud-based healthcare IT platform increased agility, scalability, and cost control, allowing OrthoCarolina’s technology team to focus on innovation and strategic projects. As Stein describes, “Just like our physicians should practice at the top of their license, our tech team should focus on high-value work. I could help on the help desk—but that’s not the best use of my time. Presidio can take that off our plate.”
In other words, Presidio now handles the day-to-day IT support and backend operations that previously pulled internal resources away from strategic initiatives. By offloading those routine tasks, OrthoCarolina’s technology team can focus on innovation, system improvements, and the kind of work that drives long-term value, just as their physicians focus on delivering top-tier care.
Streamlining Orthopedic Care Delivery with Cloud Technology
The transition to a managed cloud solution allowed OrthoCarolina to modernize its applications and infrastructure while positioning its clinics for long-term
success. With a secure, scalable foundation and ongoing support from Presidio, the organization can focus on innovation while adapting quickly to market demands.
This shift to cloud management delivered measurable benefits, helping OrthoCarolina:
-
Enhanced patient experiences:
Streamlined scheduling, faster follow-ups, and easier access to records create a more personalized care journey.
-
Reduced costs:
Cloud migration and operational consolidation eliminated redundancies and shifted procedures to lower-cost settings.
-
Greater adaptability:
Scalable technology enables rapid response to regulatory changes and market needs, and supports expansion to new clinics.
-
Empowered staff:
With routine IT managed by Presidio, teams can focus on innovation and patient care.
This partnership exemplifies how IT services for orthopedic clinics can drive digital transformation, making advanced technology both accessible and sustainable.
Expanding Patient Access: Third-Party Clinic Technology Solutions
With its cloud foundation established through a strategic partnership with Presidio, OrthoCarolina—a physician-owned practice—has evolved from delivering hands-on patient care to also providing a robust orthopedic technology services platform. Built and managed in collaboration with Presidio, this platform not only supports OrthoCarolina’s own clinics but is now being extended to third-party clinics, enabling them to access advanced capabilities without the overhead of building and staffing their own systems.
This forward-thinking model reflects a broader trend in healthcare toward platform-based innovation, where health systems and specialty practices are extending their digital capabilities to other providers. For instance:
- The Mayo Clinic Platform enables external hospitals and developers to access shared data and AI tools.
- Cleveland Clinic has built partnerships that allow other health organizations to tap into its digital health infrastructure.
- Epic Systems’ Community Connect program lets larger hospitals provide their EHR and IT frameworks to independent practices.
By developing its own orthopedic care technology platform, OrthoCarolina is aligning with this movement, showing how a physician-owned practice can act as both a healthcare provider and a technology innovator.
The Future of Orthopedic Care and Healthcare Modernization
OrthoCarolina’s experience highlights several key lessons for healthcare organizations considering modernization:
- Strategic partnerships matter: Collaborating with technology partners who understand healthcare can accelerate transformation. Presidio’s role as a hands-on advisor and technical expert was instrumental in OrthoCarolina’s success.
- Operational focus is essential: To improve efficiency and patient outcomes, OrthoCarolina streamlined its operations by divesting from its Physical Therapy and MRI branches to concentrate on its core clinics. This allowed the organization to direct resources toward its highest-value services and focus its technology modernization where it would have the greatest impact.
- Cloud technology is a catalyst: Moving to modern platforms enhances flexibility and operational efficiency, improving cost control while freeing teams to focus on higher-value work.
- Sharing innovation benefits the industry: Extending technology platforms to other providers can drive broader improvements in care delivery.
Stein sums up the journey: “Like everyone, we are concerned about how we’re going to keep up with high market demands and rapidly changing tech with fewer resources to do so. If you can find yourself a partner that will be with you throughout your journey, to help you evolve, innovate, modernize, and figure out new ways to generate revenue, you solve that problem and then some. You’re ahead of the game.”
Presidio’s partnership helped OrthoCarolina achieve something uncommon in its field: a unified, cloud-based technology ecosystem that supports both patient care and business growth. Unlike many orthopedic groups that rely on fragmented systems or outsourced IT vendors, OrthoCarolina built an integrated model that it can now extend to other clinics, offering a glimpse into how specialty medicine will evolve in the digital era.
By embracing leadership, vision, and a willingness to rethink what’s possible, OrthoCarolina achieved meaningful transformation. For healthcare organizations everywhere, the message is clear: modernization is an ongoing process, and the right partners can make all the difference.
Want to learn more? Read the full story or watch the video case study.
If your healthcare or life sciences organization is exploring cloud solutions or managed IT partnerships, contact Presidio to learn how we can help you streamline operations, improve outcomes, and innovate with confidence.
FAQs:
Cloud Technology and Orthopedic Care
What is a cloud-based orthopedic care platform?
A cloud-based orthopedic care platform is a secure, digital infrastructure that allows clinics to manage scheduling, imaging, patient data, and workflows in one connected system. At OrthoCarolina, this platform, developed with Presidio and powered by Microsoft Azure, improves patient experience and operational efficiency by centralizing tools and reducing IT complexity.
Why are orthopedic clinics moving to managed cloud solutions?
Orthopedic clinics are adopting managed cloud solutions to reduce IT overhead, improve scalability, and enhance data security. These solutions allow clinical and administrative teams to focus on patient care while experts manage infrastructure and system updates. For example, OrthoCarolina partnered with Presidio to migrate its full data center to Azure, improving agility and lowering costs.
How do cloud solutions benefit healthcare providers overall?
Cloud solutions help healthcare organizations streamline operations, lower infrastructure costs, and securely scale to meet patient needs. They also make data more accessible across clinics, which supports better decision-making and faster innovation in care delivery.
What makes OrthoCarolina’s technology strategy unique in healthcare?
Unlike most specialty practices, OrthoCarolina built a unified, cloud-based technology ecosystem that integrates IT operations with patient care. This forward-thinking approach enables the organization to extend its digital platform to third-party clinics, pioneering a new model for collaboration and modernization in orthopedic care.
Modernization and Managed IT Services
What role did Presidio play in OrthoCarolina’s modernization?
Presidio provided end-to-end technology support, including analyzing workflows, leading the migration to Microsoft Azure and Azure VMware Service (AVS), and managing backend complexity. This allowed OrthoCarolina’s internal technology team to focus on innovation, not maintenance.
How can managed IT services improve patient care?
By outsourcing infrastructure management to a trusted partner, healthcare organizations can reallocate internal resources toward clinical innovation and patient engagement. In OrthoCarolina’s case, IT teams shifted from troubleshooting to strategic projects that enhance care quality and operational efficiency.
Healthcare Innovation and Industry Trends
How is OrthoCarolina’s model part of a broader trend in healthcare innovation?
Across the healthcare sector, providers are embracing scalable, platform-based models, such as Mayo Clinic Platform and Epic’s Community Connect, to share technology resources and insights across organizations. OrthoCarolina’s cloud platform reflects this shift toward accessible, collaborative innovation in healthcare IT.
How can other healthcare and life sciences organizations start their modernization journey?
Modernization starts with assessing existing workflows and partnering with an experienced IT provider who understands healthcare. Organizations can begin by migrating critical systems to the cloud, standardizing processes, and building toward a connected, data-driven model for patient care. Presidio’s healthcare team helps providers design scalable, secure roadmaps tailored to their needs
