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It is not a tough nut to crack. All that it needs is proper training and education of the related managing team. A good anti-virus and encryption software are two vital things that can greatly enhance the online security scenario of the health centre. Password-protect all the data and do not make use of free wireless and hotspots to access the online data.
Physical security
Despite the increasing dependence on e-records, most of the security breaches happen on physical data records. The patient related files and documents lost/stolen/ carelessly discarded or handled are the prime factors for this type of security breach. The healthcare centre should ensure that these documents are stored in and guarded properly.
No relevant paper should find its way into paper bins. The information contained in these documents may not be that of the patients but they can provide the hacker with vital clues to the in house situation. Do not share in-house vital information with unauthorized people. Physical loss also means loss of computers and e-hardware that contains e-records. Therefore, trust area of security assessment and coverage should be physical.
Be honest with the patients
If despite all these measures the data of the patients is lost/breached/compromised, then the best alternative to the health care centre authorities is to own up that such a thing has happened and inform the patients about it. This candidness should be backed with a damage control exercise to inform and educate the concerned persons of the severity of the problem and what the centre is doing against it.
With these measures, the health care centers can mitigate and even eliminate the problem of theft of patient’s information. Remember that good security comes for a price and therefore be willing to invest in it.]]>
