Why Azure Virtual Desktop is the cure for healthcare IT woes

Let’s face it — modernizing IT in healthcare isn’t a nice-to-have anymore. With growing security risks, rising costs and increasing pressure to support hybrid work and mobility, the old way of doing things just doesn’t cut it. This is where Microsoft Azure Virtual Desktop (AVD) comes in. It’s not just a technical upgrade; it’s a smarter way to help clinicians do what they do best: deliver care.

The challenge: IT gaps and workflow friction

If you’re in healthcare IT, you know the challenges: managing complex infrastructure and ensuring staff have fast, secure access across various floors, buildings and devices. On-premises virtual desktop infrastructure can feel like a patchwork solution — difficult to scale, costly to maintain and slow to adapt. Even if your virtual environment is technically solid, it can fall short if it doesn’t align with the actual workflows of your staff.

While electronic health record (EHR) systems are the backbone of digital healthcare, they’re just one part of the bigger picture. Clinicians also rely on a full suite of tools: department systems, productivity software, web browsers, secure messaging and more. They expect to be able to move effortlessly across devices and locations without disrupting their workflows. That’s why a well-planned desktop strategy is crucial for effective care delivery.

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Why Azure Virtual Desktop makes sense

AVD isn’t a traditional virtual desktop. It’s a flexible, secure and cloud-native platform designed for the way healthcare works today:

• Scale as you need it: Handle morning logins, shift changes and surges in activity, then scale back automatically.
• Security built in: Zero trust, conditional access and multifactor authentication are all natively integrated with Azure.
• Roaming sessions: Let clinicians pick up right where they left off, on any workstation.
• Smarter printing and device mapping: No more wrong printers or login headaches.
• Simplified management: With centralized provisioning and updates, you don’t have to juggle device types and locations.

Bridging the gap between IT and care

We’ve seen how simple things like slow logins or bad printer-mapping often become big frustrations. AVD smooths out these kinks. It helps IT teams maintain control while giving clinicians the fast, secure experience they need.

Imagine a nurse starting her shift. She taps her badge at a shared workstation, and her full desktop loads in seconds. No delays, no setup. She heads to another floor, and her session follows her. Over lunch, she checks on a patient issue from a lounge terminal. Everything’s there, just like she left it.

Or take a physician at home after hours. She gets a secure message about a patient needing a prescription refill. She grabs her phone, launches AVD, logs in securely, reviews the chart, adjusts the medication order and logs off. The refill request is sent to the pharmacy in minutes. No virtual private network, no hassle.

Security without slowing things down

Security isn’t optional — it’s expected. AVD makes it easier to meet compliance while keeping workflows smooth:

• Every session is validated and every device checked.
• No need to install heavy agents on every endpoint.
• Integrated logging and auditing help you comply with the Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act in the US and other regulations.

AVD is built to help IT sleep better and keep clinicians moving.

Why partner with NTT DATA?

At NTT DATA, we don’t just roll out AVD and walk away. We design for your environment, your workflows and your goals. We’ve helped hospitals, clinics and healthcare systems providers rethink how they deliver IT, and we have deep experience with all the EHR platforms and specialty apps you already rely on.

Our team maps clinical workflows to technical architecture, builds session logic and automation that reflect how people actually work, and knows how to streamline login times, reduce support tickets and keep users happy.

Let’s rethink the desktop

The world of healthcare IT has changed, and it’s time the desktop caught up. With AVD and a trusted partner like NTT DATA, you can give your clinicians the flexibility they want and your IT team the control they need.

Let’s start the conversation. We’ll show you how AVD can simplify operations, strengthen security and improve the clinician experience.

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