As Microsoft support for Windows 10 runs out in October 2025, many healthcare organizations are preparing for the Windows 11 upgrade. Jennifer Brown, Vice President of Community Practice Groups, Bill Borton, Director of Engineering & Projects, and Pedro Santiago, Associate Systems Engineer, discussed what this upgrade means for their clients and how they work to ensure a smooth transition.
Planning a purposeful upgrade
“We work closely with our clients throughout their IT progressions, and we’ve explained that this upgrade is necessary,” said Pedro. “While some people may feel apprehensive about upgrading their operating system, we’ve explained that this upgrade helps keep their system up to date with the latest compliance and security measures.”
“To carefully plan out our clients’ transitions and develop a strategic timeline, we have turned off the automatic upgrade to Windows 11,” added Pedro.
The Pixel Health team employs this hands-on approach so they can monitor initial feedback in the general market about the upgrade, understand its implications to current applications, and help ensure they can avoid unnecessary interruptions for their clients during the upgrade process.
It is important to have a plan in place and understand how your Windows 11 upgrade will be managed. Working with health system leaders, practice mangers, and physicians, we produce a well-documented plan to meet their unique needs.
Understanding the benefits and challenges
Windows 11 has been praised for its improved performance, optimizations to support hybrid work, improved touchscreen capabilities for pen and voice inputs, as well as an emphasis on connectivity and data sharing. However, the Pixel Health team has also observed a few challenges with the operating system.
“The main disadvantages of Windows 11 involve the more stringent hardware requirements and potential compatibility issues. That’s why we run a readiness check on each device to determine if it can support the new operating system—before we deploy and test it,” said Pedro. “Some healthcare organizations may learn that their current hardware does not meet the specifications.”
The team has also observed that Windows 11 has a steep learning curve with its new user interface.
“The display in Windows 11 is very different—it’s not just a slight tweak,” said Pedro. “Users should budget extra time to get comfortable with the new changes, such as the placement of buttons and tools.”
Preparing for the Windows 11 upgrade
Regardless of the number of employees upgrading at a hospital or physician group practice, it is important to plan ahead for the transition. Once an organization is ready to schedule the upgrade, the Pixel Health team works to propose a timeline for testing hardware and software compatibility and implements the transition plan.
“We encourage hospitals and physician groups to start the Windows 11 upgrade process sooner rather than later so it’s not up against the October 2025 deadline. While we can accommodate a rapid deployment and testing schedule, we highly recommend a slow rollout to minimize any potential disruption and downtime,” added Jennifer. “The longer we have to plan, the better.”
Click here to learn more about how Pixel Health can meet the unique and often time-critical needs of the clinical environment to ensure your technology is up and running.
If you are interested in evaluating your Windows 11 upgrade plan, please reach out to Jennifer Brown, Vice President, Community Practice Groups.
