New to Open-EMR, Small Clinic Implementation on Cloud Server

Management and Administration
#1

Hello! I’m the healthcare provider (Nurse Practitioner) and owner of a small clinic. I am undertaking a cloud based install of Open-EMR and I have been experimenting with Open-EMR for around a month now through local installs with XAMMP, cloud based AWS express edition, as well as the Google Cloud version. I’ve managed to get everything up and running, manipulate the schedule, edit lists, add patients, and all that, but I’m having trouble with security, HTTPS, SSL, etc…and I want to ensure my install is secure before I begin loading patient information. I’ve been all paper with my clinic up to this point. I admit I have a very limited knowledge base here with web servers, virtual machines, EC2 instances, MySQL, and Security, but I have the time and will to learn and I do have decent aptitude for learning computer systems. I’m sure my questions will show my ignorance, I have a lot to learn and a lot of research to do and I am aware of that.

My Questions:

  1. I can’t figure out how to enable HTTPS/SSL on my existing instance, I am apparently missing a very basic step. Do I have to setup an additional instance? Do I need to start over?

  2. Can the Google Cloud Version be HIPAA compliant?

  3. Is AWS recommended over google cloud?

  4. I am very cost conscious, I am a new clinic, and I’m trying to save every dollar possible. I don’t quite understand what benefit the AWS standard version has over AWS Express Plus. What can the standard version do that the Express Plus Version Cannot? I am mainly concerned about keeping my patient information safe and complying with HIPAA law.

#2

I may be better off using a local install of Open-EMR that is not connected to the Web until I am sufficiently educated to confidently implement the cloud based version securely after which I could migrate all of my data to the cloud based install

#3

hi @mattchatman, have you looked at @jesdynf’s tips for express-plus?

you can ssh into your instance and then edit the docker-compose.yml to add DOMAIN and EMAIL

ubuntu@ip-10-0-1-118:~$ sudo bash
root@ip-10-0-1-118:~# docker exec -it $(docker ps | grep _openemr | cut -f 1 -d " ") /bin/sh
vi docker-compose.yml

#4

I think that’s the write up I’ve been looking for, Thankyou!