Healthcare
Data backup for veterinary practices and animal clinics
Mindtime copies your imaging workstations, NAS storage, mail, shared files and laptops to its own data centres in the Netherlands and Germany. Backups are immutable, with a further air-gapped copy, and every job is checked.
In Dutch, German or English.
- NL · DEStored only in our own Tier III data centres in the Netherlands and Germany
- ImmutableObject Lock storage plus an air-gapped copy; every backup job is checked
- ISO 27001 · NEN 7510Audited security, with a data processing agreement in every contract
- NL · DE · ENSupport from people, no offshore call centres or chatbots
In short
Veterinary practices need off-site backups because patient records, medicine administration and owner details must stay available for years, and ransomware does not distinguish between human and animal clinics. Mindtime backs up imaging workstations, NAS storage, Microsoft 365 or Google Workspace and laptops to its own ISO 27001-audited data centres in the Netherlands and Germany.
What's at stake
The data veterinary practices can't afford to lose
Animal patient records
Identification, owner details, history, findings, diagnosis, treatment plan and the owner's consent are what the KNMvD expects in each record. They are what you open when the same dog comes back with a limp.
Medicine administration
Every received and dispensed veterinary medicine is recorded with batch number, quantity and recipient. That administration has to be produced on request for years afterwards.
X-rays, ultrasound and herd reports
Imaging, lab results and farm visit reports build up quickly and often sit on a workstation or NAS rather than in the practice software. For farm-animal practices, herd dossiers are part of the record.
Rules and obligations
What the rules ask of veterinary practices
Summarised from the sources listed at the bottom of this page. This is general information, not legal advice.
What the record must contain
The KNMvD Richtlijn Verslaglegging lists the contents of an individual animal dossier, such as identification, owner details, anamnesis, findings, diagnosis, treatment plan and owner consent, and of herd dossiers for farm animals. [1]
Retention depends on the animal
The same KNMvD guideline sets retention for companion-animal records at up to two years after the animal's death, and five years for herd dossiers and medicine records of food-producing animals. [1]
Medicine records: five years, with batch numbers
The KNMvD points out that the administration of received and dispensed veterinary medicines, including batch numbers, must be kept for five years, based on Articles 5.16 and 5.17 of the Regeling Diergeneesmiddelen. [2]
Owner data is personal data
Animal records carry owners' names and addresses. The AP treats ransomware that encrypted files with personal data as a data breach, so a practice can face reporting duties like any other organisation. [3]
No NIS2 sector for veterinary care
Veterinary practices are not among the sectors listed in the NCSC's information brochure on the Cyberbeveiligingswet, so NIS2 duties do not normally apply to them. [4]
When it goes wrong
Ransomware in a mixed practice
Illustrative example: a mixed practice with a companion-animal clinic and a farm-animal team finds its shared drive and imaging workstation encrypted on a Monday. The practice software runs in the cloud and still works, but X-rays, herd visit reports and the medicine administration exports are locked. Mindtime's immutable backups were out of reach of the ransomware; after a malware scan the files are restored to a cleaned workstation. The practice then deals with the AP notification with its data intact.
How Mindtime protects it
Backup for veterinary practices, workload by workload
- Laptop and endpoint backupImaging workstations and laptops used on farm visits hold data the cloud software never sees.
- NAS backupX-ray and ultrasound images are often stored on a Synology or QNAP box in the clinic.
- Microsoft 365 backupMail with owners, labs and referral clinics needs a copy outside Microsoft.
- Google Workspace backupPractices on Gmail and Drive need protection against deleted files and accounts.
The software you use, and what we protect around it
| Animana (IDEXX) | Cloud practice management software offered to Dutch veterinary practices. IDEXX runs the platform; check its export and retention terms, and let Mindtime protect the mail, files and devices around it. |
|---|---|
| Digital X-ray and ultrasound workstations | Imaging software usually stores images on the workstation or a NAS. Mindtime backs up Windows workstations and Synology or QNAP storage. |
| Microsoft 365 or Google Workspace | Mail with owners, referral clinics and labs, plus shared folders with protocols. Mindtime backs up either suite to its Dutch and German data centres. |
| Laptops for farm and home visits | Notes and reports written on the road. Mindtime backs up Windows, macOS and Linux laptops and mobile devices. |
Before you switch
What veterinary practices ask us first
Our practice software is in the cloud. What else is there to back up?
Images on the X-ray workstation, files on the shared drive, mail and laptops all sit outside the practice software. Those are what Mindtime protects, in its own data centres in the Netherlands and Germany.
Animal records aren't as sensitive as human patient data, are they?
The records carry owners' names, addresses and payment history, which are personal data. Losing them also means losing medicine administration you have to keep for years. Mindtime stores backups only in its own ISO 27001- and NEN 7510-audited data centres, with a data processing agreement in every contract.
Is this affordable for a small practice?
Book the free 15-minute demo to see what your practice would actually need. If you use Microsoft 365 or Google Workspace, you can test that backup free for 7 days before deciding anything.
FAQ
Questions about backup for veterinary practices
How long must a veterinary practice keep records?
According to the KNMvD Richtlijn Verslaglegging, companion-animal records are kept up to two years after the animal's death, while herd dossiers and medicine records for food-producing animals are kept for five years. The administration of veterinary medicines, with batch numbers, is kept for five years too.
Does NIS2 apply to veterinary practices?
Normally not. The sectors under the Cyberbeveiligingswet, as listed by the NCSC, do not include veterinary care. That does not remove the GDPR duty to secure owners' personal data, or the practical need to recover from ransomware. A small practice is affected by an outage just as much as a large one.
Where do my backups go?
Into Mindtime's own Tier III data centres in the Netherlands and Germany, encrypted with AES-256 on the way. Copies are immutable through Object Lock, and an additional air-gapped copy is kept, following the 3-2-1-1-0 rule. Nothing is stored with a third-party cloud provider.
Who helps us when we need to restore?
Mindtime support answers in Dutch, German or English, with no offshore call centres and no chatbots. Backups are monitored 24/7 and every backup job is checked, so problems are found before you need a restore. Before data goes back to your practice, backups can be scanned for malware.
See it with your own data
Book a 15-minute demo
We show you a backup and a restore, and answer your questions in Dutch, German or English. No offshore call centres, no chatbots.