Implementing an EMR system for the practice could be of great help and benefit for both doctors as well as patients, however, patient data security is a very important issue that can not be ignored. HIPAA has set certain guidelines as regards patient data security when using an EMR system.
Usually there are four areas to examine when it comes to EMR data security:
-Physical Security – can your computers with patient data be stolen?
Put your computer server in a secure room, locked
-User Security - can anybody log on to the patient database?
Use an EMR with user management and permissions
-System Security – what happens on a hard drive crash?
Make regular back-ups and store them in a secure place
-Network Security – can unauthorized persons outside your facility access patient data?
Employ a computer specialist.
There are HIPAA penalities in case when there are violations when using EMR system as regards patient data security. The penalities can go up to $250,000 and five years in jail depending upon the seriousness of violation of security norms.
EMR is important, however, data security is equally important. Thanks for the informative post!
ReplyDelete