Huge HIPAA Fines for Non-Compliant Texting and Video Chats
Healthcare practitioners need to communicate with their patients and each other, but that is frequently done with non-compliant texting apps. While this is violation of HIPPA rules, many healthcare organizations ignore it by simply turning a blind eye to the situation.
Case in point… A recent study in the HIPAA Journal shows that an estimated 80% of healthcare professionals use personal mobile devices, many of whom have sent or received PHI on those devices even though by doing so they are violating HIPAA Rules. Willful violation of HIPAA rules can mean a penalty of $50,000 per violation per day, up to a maximum fine of $1.5 million per calendar year.
In theory it is possible to use apps like FaceTime™ or WhatsApp™ in a compliant manner, but there are a lot of details in how they must be used to fall within the guidelines. CampuSHARE’s secure communication platform supports Telehealth with the capability for video, texting and calls. These messages cannot be intercepted in transit, and all communications via the network are monitored and an audit trail is maintained, making your Compliance Officer very happy.
The Problem
You have discovered that your doctors and nurses are texting PHI information with patients as well as each other. They are doing this because they want to provide the best care for their patients and need to be in touch with them in a quick, efficient manner. They know they really shouldn’t be texting, but it’s the easiest way to reach them. Now, you have a situation where an adult child opened her father’s phone to discover a text from his doctor about complications from a procedure she did not even know about. The patient is now suing the doctor and the hospital for this HIPAA violation.
CampuSEARCH™ location-based analytics uses real-time positioning data analysis to provide invaluable insights into how assets and staff are moving through your campus. Regardless of the specific operations of your organization, the potential benefits of location analytics are wide-ranging:
- Improve asset and personnel management by analyzing and improving inefficient movement of both equipment and people
- Use assets and personnel more efficiently by monitoring the “travel patterns” of both through your campus
- Time and date specific heatmaps show asset and staff dwell time for any location on any floor and at any time
The Solution
CampuSHARE’s HIPAA-compliant communication solution incorporates access controls to ensure only the intended recipient can access messages. Users must log in to the system to access messages and the system automatically logs them off after a period of inactivity. There are also safeguards to ensure that communications are not inadvertently sent to unauthorized individuals.
At Locate Solutions, we strive to help healthcare professionals and their organizations provide a high level of care for their patients as well as avoid HIPAA fines. Let us know if you would like a demo. We have some demo time slots still available toward the end of this week.