In this video, Dr. Ravi Raheja discusses the cybersecurity measures that healthcare organizations should implement, especially when it comes to their nurse triage and nurse telehealth. These apply internally and with any third-party contractors.

Hackers can gain access to your systems through multiple points of entry, including:

• Networks
• Equipment connected to the Internet (IoT)
• Personal Devices
• Data Storage
• Records Disposal
• Remote Users

With this in mind, here’s a high-level overview of the different levels of security your team needs to address.

Physical Security

Make sure your data centers are SOC 2 Type 2 certified and HIPAA compliant, while all computers and mobile devices are password protected and inventoried.

Network Security

Make sure you have hardware firewalls, VPN access for all server admins, as well as intrusion detection and log monitoring for tracking of all of the data entering and exiting your systems.

Data Security

Encrypt your physical data while in transit and at rest (stored). Use application scanning for vulnerabilities in order to identify ways that hackers could enter your systems. Perform manual penetration testing, where someone poses as a hacker attempts to compromise your data.

Train your staff to identify data exposure risks and make sure that they:

• Send sensitive information only through encrypted email.
• Have password protection on all devices.
• Don’t open emails or click links from unrecognized sources.
• Don’t fall for phishing tactics where people pose as authorized companies to collect your company data.
• Use multifactor authentication to access all systems.

Personnel Security

Run background checks on all applicants. If you contract out any services, make sure your contractors are just as thorough with their employees.

Establish clear policies and procedures, and reinforce them through training, testing, and review.

Business Continuity and Disaster Recovery

First, you should have a business continuity plan to proactively stop any problems before they happen. Second, you’ll need an effective disaster recovery strategy in case something goes wrong and your system still fails. That includes redundancies so you have backup systems that people can move to, as well as offline data storage backups that can salvage any information that was lost.

Both business continuity and disaster recovery need to be tested and monitored regularly.

How Secure Is Your Nurse Triage?

Make sure your in-house triage team or contracted triage company has the appropriate security infrastructure in place that addresses all of these recommendations. If you think it’s time to integrate nurse triage and nurse telehealth with your practice, consider the services that we offer.