Associating the results of the quiz with real-world scenarios: how effective privacy and security strategies lead to organizational success
Securing patient information is the first goal of the health record system. The system includes the practitioner who includes nurse, doctor, support staff, and other personnel in the facility or outside associated with the patient records. It also involves the integrity of hardware and software components used to store, retrieve, and connect computer devices. The game involves a serried of tests involving employee relation with patient data, management system, and client events. Password confidentiality, data encryption, accident report, and management, the punishment of staff that violated patient confidentiality and sharing of a patient record with relatives or staff were highlighted.
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It is imperative that patient records are kept as secure as possible. Data should be encrypted, password changed on a quarterly basis, data backup in alternate facilities practiced and staff involved in data exposure notified and suspended after deactivation of their accounts. A facility that ensures patient data safety improves patient health outcome as patients are satisfied and feel safe submitting their data to the facility. The subject is important in the use of remote monitoring or telehealth system. Patients are monitored real-time, through stored and submitted records or through devices attached to them to collect and submit data (Mechanic & Kimball, 2018).
How privacy and security risks and errors thwart organizational success and lead to negative patient outcomes
Data security protects patients from exploitation and infringement of privacy. Exposing patient data causes patient vulnerability as they may be exposed to discrimination because of the information about them (Filkins et al., 2019). Exposing patient data could also result in data loss, corruption, and damages. The effect of these results creates uncertainty in the management of patients. Important data are affected, which jeopardizes a patient's future health care. For instance, in case a patient was progressing with treatment, and the data is lost, the doctor will lack reference. Other cases may cause confusion, health damages, or death, especially where the risks expose patient data to corruption through data mix-up.
Legal and ethical considerations presented in the scenarios, and what laws and standards may be applied to ensure data privacy
The scenario involves cases of physicians operating and handling patient data in an unethical manner. Cases were presented involving physicians sharing patient data with colleagues, the family of the patient, exposing patient data to other users, and password sharing. The highlighted unethical conditions required different solutions. The offender could be punished in public before patient and colleagues, or called in private and warned or given notice of expulsion. These scenarios identify the essence of adopting a punishment or response strategy that does not humiliate the offender but puts an end to their practice or on strict notice. From the scenarios, I noted that ethical practices, at workstations, include both the behavior of the staff and the response of the leadership. The staff should behave ethically in handling patient data, and the leadership should respond ethically to staff mistakes.
Staff should not include their emotions or friendship in handling patient data. Data handling is a significant concern affecting patient data record in the current systems (Ozair, Jamshed, Sharma & Aggarwal, 2015). The staff should maintain a high level of professionalism. Cases are presented in the scenario in which a nurse asks a colleague to provide them with a password, request to install security systems and network coverage or share patient record based on trust. Practitioners and technicians should recall at all times that principles, professionalism, goals, and objectives are the governing principles and not emotions of whether one has trust in the other or not.
The federal government has established a system of regulations to govern health practice in relation to patient data. The Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act (HIPAA) Privacy Rule (Privacy Rule) has been enforced into law to protect patient data by regulating data managers, either hospitals or third party companies (HealthIT.gov, 2019). Parties involved in a data breach are prosecuted and punished using HIPPA provisions.
References
Filkins, B. L., Kim, J. Y., Roberts, B., Armstrong, W., Miller, M. A., Hultner, M. L., ... & Steinhubl, S. R. (2016). Privacy and security in the era of digital health: what should translational researchers know and do about it?. American journal of translational research, 8(3), 1560.
HealthIT.gov. (2019). Health Information Privacy Law and Policy, retrieved from https://www.healthit.gov/topic/health-information-privacy-law-and-policy
Mechanic, O. J., & Kimball, A. B. (2018). Telehealth systems. In StatPearls [Internet]. StatPearls Publishing.
Ozair, F. F., Jamshed, N., Sharma, A., & Aggarwal, P. (2015). Ethical issues in electronic health records: A general overview. Perspectives in clinical research, 6(2), 73.
