# Centralized vs. Decentralized Cloud Computing in Healthcare
## 7 Results
#### 7.3.5 Cost Efficiency
\begin{table}
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**Comparison Criteria for HIE** & **Centralized Cloud Computing** & **Decentralized Cloud Computing** \\ \hline Capabilities & \(\bullet\) & Centralizes patient data in a single cloud repository. & \(\bullet\) & Distributes patient data across multiple nodes. \\  & \(\bullet\) & Enables seamless data exchange and integration between healthcare providers and systems. & \(\bullet\) & Requires data exchange and synchronization across nodes to facilitate HIE. \\ \hline Accessibility & \(\bullet\) & Provides fast and easy access to patient data for healthcare providers. & \(\bullet\) & Potential latency issues due to data transfer between nodes \\  & \(\bullet\) & Enhances availability and continuity of care. & \(\bullet\) & Healthcare providers may need to access data from multiple nodes \\ \hline Security and Privacy & \(\bullet\) & Digital infrastructure providers implement rigorous protective protocols to preserve health information integrity. & \(\bullet\) & Security and privacy measures required at each node. \\ \hline Cost-Effectiveness & \(\bullet\) & Cost-effective through the elimination of the requirement for costly infrastructure and maintenance on the premises. & \(\bullet\) & Higher initial investment due to the setup and maintenance of multiple nodes and ensuring their synchronization. \\ \hline Reliability & \(\bullet\) & Relies on stable and high-speed network connectivity to access cloud services. & \(\bullet\) & Decreased vulnerability to single point of failure, as data are available across multiple nodes. \\ \hline Availability & \(\bullet\) & Provides a unified and consolidated view of patient data. & \(\bullet\) & Data are replicated and stored across multiple nodes, providing redundancy. \\  & \(\bullet\) & Enables comprehensive patient care and information exchange. & \(\bullet\) & If one node is unavailable, data can be retrieved from other nodes. \\ \hline \hline \end{tabular}
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Table 4: Comparison of centralized and decentralized cloud computing in context of HIE. \begin{table}
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**Centralized Cloud Computing** & **Decentralized Cloud Computing** \\ \hline Client–server architecture. & Architecture & \\ \hline \multicolumn{3}{c}{Data Management} \\ \hline Data are stored and managed on a central server, ensuring a unified and consistent repository & \(\bullet\) & Distribute data across nodes for redundancy and fault tolerance \\ \hline \multicolumn{3}{c}{System Performance} \\ \hline Fast response time is achieved because all patient data are stored on a single central server, allowing quick access. However, this method has limitations as it relies on network speed and availability and can face network bottlenecks when multiple clients access the central server simultaneously. & All nodes are distributed across different regions, enabling healthcare organizations to be closer to the nodes to improve the speed of response time and data transfer efficiency. However, it depends on the connectivity and reliability of the network concerned. \\ \hline \multicolumn{3}{c}{Latency} \\ \hline Higher latency for distant users. & Reduces latency by placing resources closer to users. \\ \hline Security is usually centralized in the server or data center for easy management and monitoring. & \(\bullet\) & Distributes encryption, access controls, and consensus algorithms across multiple nodes for data security and privacy. \\ \hline \multicolumn{3}{c}{Cost} \\ \hline Low cost & High cost \\ \hline \hline \end{tabular}
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Table 5: Comparative analysis of centralized versus decentralized cloud computing.