In the recent times, data privacy has become a major concern for organizations across every industry –especially the healthcare sector. Healthcare organizations are required to ensure proper handling of patient data for not only meeting strict regulations & laws related to data privacy, but also due to the fact that it helps in building immense transparency and trust amongst the patients.

The concept of data privacy in the healthcare sector is ever-evolving. As such, regulations & laws in the given sector are updated continually such that patients are able to receive the level of privacy that they would expect. In the given post, we will help you understand the importance of regulatory as well as legal action with respect to privacy in the healthcare industry.

Regulations That Affect Data Privacy in Healthcare

Laws related to data privacy in healthcare have been enacted as well as updated in all corners of the world in the recent years. This has eventually set a higher standard for ensuring data privacy across all major industries. In the healthcare sector, the HIPAA (Health Insurance Portability & Accountability Act) turns out to be the most notable.

The law came into existence in the year 1996. HIPAA helps in specifying data privacy as well as security requirements for the protection of PHI or protected health information. The companies out there that are capable of handling PHI –including business associates, healthcare treatment providers, and other important subcontractors, are expected to have all possible security measures intact for ensuring HIPAA compliance.

HIPAA gets continually updated as well as revised for staying ahead of the potential data breach or privacy threats. As such, the leading healthcare organizations should aim at looking for some data collection vendor that is HIPAA-compliant.

Importance of Data Privacy in Healthcare

As cyber attacks and data breaches are becoming more common in the digital era, confidential data of patients is at higher risk even than before. Due to this, the highest possible standard for data privacy in the healthcare industry is vital. Without the presence of HIPAA compliance, the patients are not only exposed to the risk of a potential data breach, but the entire organization is also at the overall risk of facing significant penalties or criminal charges if violation ever happens.

For protecting the PHI of the respective patients in the healthcare unit while avoiding fines at the same time, it is important to be aware about the ongoing HIPAA updates. At the same time, it is also crucial to maintain security across every possible aspect of the organization.

Best Practices for Ensuring Healthcare Data Privacy

You can ensure that your organization follows the essential steps for safeguarding the confidential data of the patients:

  • Using admin controls for ensuring that data is always in the right hands
  • Training employees handling PHI on effective measures of data privacy
  • Developing a dedicated plan in case some breach occurs
  • Ensuring that the vendors as well as data collection tools tend to be HIPAA-compliant and secure