Recently Raliegh Orthopedic Clinic (ROC) was fined $750,000 for violating HIPAA regulations and policy.
ROC gave the information of its patients to a business partner without the proper consent to share authorization. The Office of Civil Rights, a division of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, was tipped off and began an investigation into the matter. The findings once again remind us all in the healthcare industry of the responsibility we have to implement technology that protects confidential data.
Every time we hear about a healthcare organization breaching security laws, the public becomes more fearful.
Security breaches mean people lose enthusiasm about participating in the evolution of Big Data. They let the cynical nature take over and forget that their data is vital in curing diseases and pushing the progression towards wellness.
The data is necessary for breaking the wall and entering the field of analytic potential.
The statistics provide opportunities to understand diseases better. Outcomes will improve when we incorporate the data that sits underutilized.
For 99% of healthcare organizations, the intention is to use the patient information for the better of humanity. However, when an organization breaches the promise to protect sensitive data, we all suffer. We take a step backward in the mission of building trust, and Big Data analytics is held back.
At Rural Health IT Corporation we have implemented the award winning Consent2Share (C2S) tool within our solutions.
C2S was designed to integrate within existing Electronic Heath Records (EHR) and Health Information Exchange (HIE) systems. Sharing the information is in the power and control of the patient. You decide who sees what.
Based on worldwide standards C2S has the highest quality privatized options.
Compliance with regulatory components is necessary to ensure that we stop hearing about healthcare organizations breaking laws. Assuring the public that they have ultimate power over their data will bring support. With trust and empowered by technology, we will move past the fear of sharing data.
Every health IT business out there needs to be doing the best they can to educate how the patient is in charge of their sensitive data.
Information privacy is much more than just appeasing policy and lawmakers; it is about making the world of Big Data safer so we can progress at faster speeds.
If we were to relate this to the automobile industry; consent-to-share solutions are like seatbelts and airbags. Before cars and trucks added safety features many accidents resulted in death. By installing seatbelts and airbags the driver and passenger were provided more security. Death rates went down, and people began to experience the benefits of a safer more intelligent vehicle.
Your data is yours and should always be yours, but pieces of information that you authorize will heal and save lives.
People you have never met or have yet to be born will be changed forever by data. The future progress of health care is entirely dependent on the findings, research, and solutions that spawn from the interoperability of healthcare data.