Data Sharing Between Healthcare Organizations | George Koveos | Healthcare

Data sharing is becoming a critical challenge as the amount of data being stored and recorded increases exponentially. Medical practitioners such as doctors, nurses, pharmacists, and other healthcare professionals are expected to access and provide patient care while keeping patient data secure. However, healthcare institutions are challenged to store, manage, and share sensitive patient data safely. This calls for safe data sharing between the organizations.

Data Is Vital for Healthcare

Data is used in healthcare institutions by physicians, nurses, pharmacists, and other healthcare professionals to access patient data to deliver optimal care.

The growing volumes of data stored in healthcare institutions present a significant security challenge. Healthcare professionals need to be able to access patient data securely. They also need to share data securely to enable care coordination and efficiency. The healthcare supply chain was the most vulnerable sector to cyberattacks.

Prevent Cyber Attacks

Cyber Security is the ability to protect something from malicious people who might want to use the data for their gain. Cyberattacks pose a significant threat to the health information security landscape. HIPAA compliance is critical prevention against cyberattacks. HIPAA compliance is imperative for the safe and secure storage, access, and sharing of patient data. Therefore, healthcare institutions need to stay compliant to protect patients. HIPAA compliance helps healthcare organizations prevent cyberattacks.

Protect Employees

Employees often have a large amount of sensitive data stored at work. HIPAA compliance is essential for the safe and secure storage, access, and sharing of employee data. Healthcare institutions need to protect employee data. The staff needs to feel safe and secure when handling the data.

To keep track of health history

Another reason for data sharing between health organizations is to keep track of a patient’s health records. This is done to prevent multiple tests from being performed and prevent errors from occurring. In addition, it helps in the coordination of care if multiple health professionals see a patient.

The data types are divided into two categories: healthcare data and medical data. Healthcare data is the information collected by health professionals to assist in diagnosing, treating, and preventing disease or injury. This can include demographic information, laboratory test results, clinical notes, or billing information. Medical data are those records created by individuals during their visits to a healthcare provider. This may include lab tests or clinical results, but it can also include personal information such as descriptions of symptoms.

Originally published at https://georgekoveos.net on June 14, 2022.