The Datamax Thinking Blog

You have to include your copier in your HIPAA-compliance planning. Biometrics and HID cards can be used to reduce risk of information going astray.

Twenty years have passed since the Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act of 1996 (HIPAA) became federal law. By now, you are probably familiar with HIPAA's requirements to protect your patients' health information and have implemented various security measures to keep that data private. But there's one area you might have overlooked in your risk analysis: the copy machine. Learn about the possible security risks posed by your office copier and ways to minimize those risks.

You can use a cloud service AND remain HIPAA compliant.

You have a lot of your mind when you roll into work. You're at least partly responsible for the paperwork in your medical practice – patients' personal information, records, and other documents need to be stored safely and securely. To make your life (and all that paperwork) easier, you'd love to take advantage of the latest technology. However, HIPAA regulations make you think twice before considering cost-effective solutions such as those using the cloud.

HIPAA compliance is a must for every healthcare provider. Here are the seven essential things that must be covered.

While you may think that the actual physicians and licensed medical practitioners are responsible for HIPAA compliance, office managers must also guard confidential medical information. Not only must office managers make sure that protected health information isn't accidentally disclosed, but they must also work to protect it from theft.

If someone is selling you a HIPAA-compliant copier; they're lying to you.

You can include your multifunction copiers in your HIPAA compliance efforts (and you must!), but there is no such thing as an out-of-the-box, HIPAA-compliant copier. 

I've seen a few unscrupulous dealerships say that they sell compliant copiers. That's misleading, as it gives the impression that your compliance challenges can be met with a simple purchase. It's the policies and procedures your office must develop and follow when it comes to patient information – including the information that passes through your copiers – that will make you HIPAA-compliant.

The value to every business of paper-free processes in a single chart.

Patient records need to easily accessible and secure for all businesses in the healthcare industry. From the largest hospital to the smallest single physician office; doctors, nurses, and everyone involved in a patient's care needs quick access to their information.

At the same time, HIPAA (Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act) and the HITECH (Health Information Technology for Economical and Clinical Health) Act are regulatory guidelines that dictate the protection of patient information.

Paper is not the fastest way to share information; nor is it inherently secure (paper records can be lost/misplaced, stolen, or even copied to use in identity theft).

Your medical practice is also a business. Don’t forget to ensure your back-office processes are healthy.

While your goal as a provider of healthcare services (primary care to dermatology and anything in between) is to help your patients; you’re also operating a business. Like any business, you need to cost-effectively manage your back-office processes. While getting your patient information under control is important (read our post on 7 features you need to look for in an EHR), managing your business documents is equally important.

7 features to look for in your next – or first – electronic health record system.

This right electronic health record (EHR) system can benefit both your medical office and your patients. That's because this type of system keeps patients' health information in digital format and therefore easily accessible by authorized medical professionals, which is especially helpful for patients being treated by multiple doctors at different offices. Considering the convenience of an EHR -- along with available incentive payments -- it's easy to see why about 59% of medical providers now use one. But more than half of those providers have reported being unhappy with their EHR system. If you want a better chance at EHR satisfaction, make sure the system you choose has the following features.

EMRs and EHRs both help manage patient information; but they aren’t the same.

As a healthcare provider – doctors’ office, medical clinic, critical care facility, etc. – you’ve got a lot of paperwork to manage. Insurance forms, explanation of benefits, and, of course, patient records. We keep coming across electronic health records (EHR) and electronic medical records (EMR) as we speak to our customers and potential customers.

Some people use the terms interchangeably, kind of like they use "health" and "medical" as synonyms. However, there are some major differences

Healthcare providers need to know that protected health information could be stored in their copiers – and accessible to hacking.

Digital copiers are essential components of modern doctors' offices. They enable you to improve your communication, increase your productivity and save money. Despite these benefits, copiers are a potential source of Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act of 1996 (HIPAA) privacy and security risks.

What we also hear is that not everyone is entirely clear on the ramifications of HIPAA non-compliance. 

In 1996, the Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act (HIPAA) established significant requirements to safeguard the health information of patients.  These requirements dictate the when, how, and with whom as it relates to the sharing of Protected Health Information (PHI).

Based on what we see and hear in the Document Management and Document Workflow arena, Healthcare Providers are quite focused on the application of HIPAA guidelines within their practices and clinics today.