HIPAA IT Compliance

Once we have a clear understanding of how and where a covered entity stores sensitive data, we take all the necessary steps to ensure that access to the data is properly restricted.

This step also involves making sure that the server and network security are maximized, as cybercriminals will always look for the weakest link to exploit.

As part of HIPAA compliance, you also need to have a process to cover breach notification rules. And you can only identify breaches by implementing a security monitoring system.

Our team will advise you on the best approach, which can also become a tool for the proactive prevention of breaches.

Under HIPAA rules, you also have to put processes and systems in place for sending and receiving, and managing data from business associates. Whether it’s a pathology lab, insurance company, or another hospital, covered entities have to understand what kind of data they can and can not share.

With the right data storage systems, it’s possible to make necessary restrictions so that you only share relevant and allowed information with a business associate.

While HIPAA compliance includes a standard set of security rule requirements, how covered entities implement these rules can be vastly different.

It all depends on a wide-ranging mix of different desktop devices, smartphones, tablets, servers, and network routers. And once you layer in different types of applications, the IT infrastructure becomes even more complex.

Then there’s the information exchange through business associate agreements that you have to ensure you remain compliant with as well.

It’s simply not possible to apply a one-size-fits-all approach and expect that a covered entity will remain fully compliant.

Another critical step in remaining compliant with HIPAA privacy rule requirements is to ensure that your employees fully understand and appreciate the responsibility they have in the process as well.

IT systems can only offer so much protection, but if human error results in sending sensitive information to the wrong business associates or they leave a mobile device unattended for someone to access, then you could be facing serious levels of breaches.

Our team can provide on-site or online training for all your employees to ensure they fully understand their responsibilities.

This training can also include IT security awareness training to help them understand the risks of phishing and social hacking that have become favored tools for cybercriminals to gain access to sensitive information.

While your top priority might be a full HIPAA risk assessment and implementation of the latest security technology, our team will also advise you on additional services that will complement your overall cybersecurity levels.

We can offer full network administration and advanced endpoint security systems that will ensure there are no weak links that make you a prime target for cybercriminals.

You also have the option of hiring us to manage your business applications and to make the transition towards safer and more cost-effective cloud computing solutions.

Our fully managed IT packages are tailored to the specific needs of clients, and it’s a great way to achieve much greater productivity from your IT infrastructure without the need for a large team of IT engineers and analysts.

While patients of a HIPAA-covered entity will be primarily concerned with getting the best medical advice and treatment, they are also very concerned about keeping sensitive medical information private.

And when you can prove that you are taking all the necessary steps for dealing with protected health information through advanced technology solutions, you’ll gain a lot more patient trust.

All it takes is one data security breach because security rule requirements were not properly followed, and you can lose that patient trust forever.

It can often take healthcare organizations decades to build up a brand reputation for quality and trust. But a simple cyber security breach could take seconds to undo all that effort and result in lasting reputational damage.

It’s why we take a custom approach to providing advice on physical safeguards to ensure HIPAA compliance. And because we have some of the most experienced cyber security analysts on our team, we’ll do everything possible to protect your reputation.

In many cases where we have been hired to rectify breaches of security rules that resulted in leaked patient data, our risk analysis revealed that companies didn’t have the right systems in place to maximize protection.

Many managed IT service providers work with a standard HIPAA compliance checklist. And while that can ensure that you have the basics covered, it doesn’t account for the complex infrastructures of individual healthcare organizations.

Every business is set up differently, and with a different combination of hardware and software solutions comes a unique need for technical safeguards.

Our team aims to provide tailored solutions that always take proactive steps to upgrade your security measures to new threats and new regulatory requirements as soon as they emerge.

People think about the privacy and security rules associated with HIPAA as a necessary IT cost. But implementing technical safeguards using the most advanced technology and service providers can also become a very important selling point.

In addition, remaining fully HIPAA compliant will also be necessary in order to bid for and secure local and federal government contracts.

If there was any indication that HIPAA-covered entities didn’t take all the necessary steps to properly handle health records, then those contracts would be impossible to obtain. And you will likely need to show proof that you are fully compliant in order to become a business associate of a government agency.

When you outsource regulatory IT compliance, you also have the opportunity to invest in a fully integrated service. While securing your protected health information based on security rule requirements is key to your business success, an outsourcing partner can also provide a full range of managed IT services.

That can include all the IT support your doctors, nurses, and admin staff need with hardware and software issues. And outsourcing your IT network maintenance and monitoring, email management, and business continuity planning will add another layer of efficiency and protection.