For 5 weeks, we have discussed the use of electronic medical records and HIPAA from many different angles and perspectives. As health care professionals, failure to maintain confidentiality can have dire consequences both for the patients involved and you as a health care worker. For this assignment, please research the internet and look for a case study or lawsuit that involved either EMR and/or HIPAA. Read the case carefully, and then write a 100-200 word essay covering the following points:
- Briefly describe the incident
- What harm occurred
- What was the outcome
- Your opinion as to the incident and whether you felt the outcome was justified
- Finally, what could have prevented the incident?
Be sure and provide a link to your article as well. Grammar and spelling DO count, as well as proper formatting. I look forward to reading about your findings and your opinion.
How to Solve For 5 weeks, we have discussed the use of electronic medical records and HIPAA from many different angles and perspectives. As health care professionals, failure to maintain confidentiality can have d Nursing Assignment Help
Introduction:
As a medical professor, it is essential to educate our medical college students about the importance of maintaining confidentiality while using electronic medical records (EMR) and complying with the Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act (HIPAA). In today’s digital age, sensitive information can easily leak, which can have serious consequences for patients and healthcare workers alike. Therefore, this assignment will require our students to conduct research on a case study or lawsuit that involved EMR and/or HIPAA violation. The assignment aims to assess the students’ understanding of the case, evaluate its outcome, and ask for their opinions on the matter.
Answer:
One of the most significant HIPAA violations resulted in a penalty of $5.5 million against Advocate Health Care Network in 2016. This health care network runs 12 hospitals and over 200 facilities in Illinois. In 2013, four unencrypted company laptops were stolen from an administrative office. The laptops contained the health information of over four million patients. The incident was not immediately reported for four months, violating HIPAA provisions.
The harm that occurred was the unauthorized access and use of patients’ sensitive information, including names, addresses, current or past medical treatments, diagnoses, and social security numbers. The data breach left the patients open to identity theft and fraudulent activities that could lead to severe financial consequences.
According to the outcome, the Advocate Health Care Network was fined for not following HIPAA security rules and not doing enough to enforce policies and procedures. The company also failed to train its employees to care properly for equipment holding confidential information.
In my opinion, the outcome of the incident was justified. The healthcare provider had an ethical responsibility to safeguard patients’ information and ensure compliance with the HIPAA regulations. The data breach was a serious violation, and the healthcare provider was negligent in failing to encrypt over four million patients’ data.
To prevent the incident, the healthcare provider could have encrypted the laptop data, which would require password authentication to access the data. The company could also have trained its employees to report a breach immediately and have a post-breach remedy plan in place. Additionally, they must ensure that all equipment holding confidential information have reasonable protective measures.
In conclusion, Advocate Health Care Network’s violation of HIPAA provisions showcases the importance of adequately protecting patient’s sensitive information. Healthcare providers must ensure that they encrypt electronic devices that hold confidential medical data to prevent data breaches. Proper employee training should also be conducted to ensure that employees are aware and know how to detect, report, and mitigate data breaches.
