It’s been a rough stretch for software reliability across the ABA industry. Practice owners have swapped stories about sudden outages, support tickets that went nowhere, and in some cases, platforms that failed so badly that vendors released customers from their contracts. If any of these scenarios sound familiar, you’re likely asking a question you used to take for granted: Can I actually trust this software with my client data?
It’s a reasonable concern. The records living in your practice management platform aren’t just rows in a database: behind them are the children and families your practice serves, and the years of clinical work that built their trust. When that system fails, it isn’t an inconvenience. It’s a crisis.
If you’re currently evaluating a new platform, whether by choice or because circumstances made the decision for you, here’s a Reliability Checklist we’d encourage any practice to run through before signing with a new vendor.
1. What actually happens to my data if something goes wrong?
When it comes to data security, ask specifically about redundancy and backups. A vendor should be able to explain, in plain language, what stands between a bad update and permanent data loss. If they can’t answer clearly, that’s an answer in itself.
2. How is the platform actually built?
There’s a real difference between software built on modern infrastructure and software that’s been patched, layered, and stretched over the years to keep up with new demands. Ask what the platform is built on and how old the core architecture is. Legacy systems can work fine until they don’t, which is usually right when you need them most.
3. What does switching actually look like?
A responsible software migration shouldn’t be an all-or-nothing leap. Look for a vendor that can run your new system in parallel with your old one, verify your data before anything is decommissioned, and offer a way to roll back if something doesn’t feel right during the transition.
4. What’s their actual track record?
Uptime percentages get thrown around freely, but ask for real numbers, and find out what counts as “down” in their definition. (It may differ from your expectations and/or needs.) A vendor confident in their reliability will show you the data, not just tell you about it.
5. Who do I call when something breaks?
Client support responsiveness is easy to promise and hard to verify before you’ve signed a contract. Ask current customers what actually happened the last time something broke. Look into how support handles real emergencies, not just routine questions. That’s the answer that tells you what you’re getting.
Bonus question: Can the platform grow with my practice?
A platform that works for a five-person startup practice needs a very different foundation to still work at 50 people and multiple locations. Inquire about what happens to performance as caseloads and staff counts grow. Request examples, not assurances.
At RethinkBH, this checklist is close to home, and it mirrors the same questions that shaped how we reimagined our scheduling and clinical experience from the ground up. It runs on redundant, enterprise-grade architecture designed specifically so a bad update can’t become a bad day for your practice. Migrations run in parallel with your existing system, with a rollback safety net built in. And it’s designed to scale, whether you’re running one location or 20.
If you’re in the middle of evaluating a new platform for your practice, we’d like the chance to have a conversation. No pressure, no long pitch, just a straight look at how we built our platform and why.
