How Runnymede Healthcare Centre protects healthcare data
September 18, 2019
As healthcare information moves into the digital space, patient medical records are increasingly vulnerable to hacking and exposure. Cyber-attacks have become more advanced as organized criminals target valuable healthcare data and threaten the privacy of patients.
“Now the most major breaches of health information are due to malicious intent,” said Raj Sewda, Executive Vice President Clinical, Chief Operating Officer & Chief Nursing Executive. “We cannot just rely on past practice for information security. Now we have to proactively protect information.”
While Runnymede Healthcare Centre begins the process of implementing electronic medical records, the privacy and security of patient health information is our highest priority. Runnymede is taking the necessary precautions to ensure our patients’ healthcare data remains secure. Using “Privacy by Design,” Runnymede builds excellence by proactively protecting healthcare data using the following techniques:
Ongoing employee education and training
“We are only as good as our frontline employees handling the information,” said Sewda. Privacy and security education for new hires and annual competency training for current staff are key to preventing accidental breaches.
Blame-free culture
Blame free self-reporting encourages a culture of safety to prioritize reporting information breaches so they can receive an appropriate response and we can mitigate future risks.
Audits/ vulnerability testing
Security audits and vulnerability testing help the hospital understand potential threats and implement preventative measures.
Privacy impact assessments
Privacy Impact Assessments (PIAs) are used to identify the potential privacy risks of new or redesigned programs and technology before they are put into use. Before implementing any kind of new technology, Runnymede conducts system integrity and privacy tests.
As Runnymede embraces the future of connected healthcare, the hospital is making sure security is integrated into every step of the process to protect the privacy of our patients.