This 90-minute webinar will discuss the requirements, the risks, and the issues in using mobile devices and social networking for patient communications.
We will review policies and procedures, documentation, major compliance areas and training to ensure they are updated to meet these new challenges.
Why Should You Attend:
Most HIPAA covered entities now face difficult choices as mobile devices such as smart phones and tablets proliferate and become the standard for personal communications both by providers and their patients, and social networking sites become a preferred means of communication for many.
Have you updated your information security risk analysis or policies and procedures to address the increasing use of mobile devices and social networking for patient communications? If not, you run the risk of breaches, rule violations, and fines in the event of mishandling of PHI using these new technologies.
With the new HIPAA random audit program now getting under way, and increases in enforcement actions following breaches, now is the time to ensure your organization is in compliance with the regulations and meeting the communication needs and desires of its providers and patients.
You need the proper privacy protections for health information, and the necessary documented policies and procedures, as well as documentation of any actions taken pursuant to your policies and procedures.
Your policies and procedures will probably need major revisions to maintain compliance in areas such as individual access of records, accounting of disclosures, and breach notification. And, of course, you will need to train your staff in all the new policies and procedures.
The session will discuss the requirements, the risks, and the issues of the increasing use of mobile devices and social networking for patient communications and provide a road map for how to use them safely and effectively, to increase the quality of health care and patient satisfaction.
Areas Covered
- How Patients and Providers want to use texting and social networking.
- How to evaluate the use of new technologies under HIPAA
- Issues with using non-HIPAA designations for non-covered activities.
- Using Risk Analysis to make sound compliance decisions without breaking any rules or asking patients to yield their rights.
- What needs to be in your social networking policy.
- What secure alternatives there are to “regular” texting and social networking.
- The impacts of using non-compliant technologies.
- The importance of thorough, regular training to safe technology use.
- Potential penalties for non-compliance.
Instructor
Jim Sheldon-Dean is the founder and director of compliance services at Lewis Creek Systems, LLC, a Vermont-based consulting firm founded in 1982, providing information privacy and security regulatory compliance services to a variety of health care providers, businesses, universities, small and large hospitals, urban and rural mental health and social service agencies, health insurance plans, and health care business associates.
He serves on the HIMSS Information Systems Security Workgroup, has co-chaired the Electronic Data Interchange Privacy and Security Workgroup, currently serves on the WEDI Breach Notification sub-workgroup, and is a recipient of the 2011 WEDI Award of Merit.
He is a frequent speaker regarding HIPAA and information privacy and security compliance issues at seminars and conferences, including speaking engagements at AHIMA national and regional conventions and WEDI national conferences, and before regional HFMA chapter meetings and state hospital associations.
Mr. Sheldon-Dean has nearly 30 years of experience in policy analysis and implementation, business process analysis, information systems and software development. His experience includes leading the development of health care related websites; award-winning, best-selling commercial utility software; and mission-critical, fault-tolerant communications satellite control systems.
In addition, he has eight years of experience doing hands-on medical work as a Vermont certified volunteer emergency medical technician. Mr. Sheldon-Dean received his B.S. degree, summa cum laude, from the University of Vermont and his master's degree from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology.