As electronic health records become increasingly commonplace, it is crucial for individuals to understand the importance of securing their electronic health data.
With electronic medical records containing sensitive personal information such as birthdates, Social Security numbers, and medical history, failing to protect these documents adequately can have serious consequences.
In order to ensure that your electronic health records are properly secured and safeguarded from potential threats or breaches, one should take a few key steps.
In this article, we will discuss the importance of securing electronic health records and how you can do so effectively.
Potential Threats & Breaches associated with Electronic Health Records
When electronic health records are not adequately secured, they are vulnerable to malicious attacks such as hacking or data breaches. These types of events can lead to the theft of healthcare information, which could then be used for identity theft or financial fraud.
Furthermore, a data breach may result in unauthorized access and manipulation of electronic health records, leading to incorrect medical diagnoses and treatments.
Explain various steps that individuals can take to protect their electronic health records
Authentication Process
One of the most important steps you can take is to ensure that your electronic health record system has secure authentication procedures in place. This means that only authorized personnel are able to access the records, and any changes made must also be approved and authenticated.
Encryption
It is also important to ensure that electronic health records are encrypted and stored securely on a secure server or cloud-based system, as this will help protect them from potential cyber threats. Additionally, regularly updating anti-virus software can help to prevent malware attacks.
Keep Your Systems Updated
Finally, be sure to keep your systems up-to-date with the latest manufacture recommended patches, as this will help reduce the risk of a data breach.
Conclusion
In order to ensure the safety of your electronic health records, it is recommended that you seek the assistance of an experienced IT consultant. An IT consultant can provide valuable insights into the most secure authentication and storage procedures for electronic health records, as well as the best anti-virus software for your system.
Give the team at Ingenuity Group a call today to start the process of securing your electronic health records.