Everyone knows that litigation is an expensive process. Both the costs of engaging in litigation as well as the growing size of judgements are adding to the precision required when it comes to trail preparation and court appearances. Medical malpractice and personal injury claim awards in the US are soaring into double digit millions of dollars.
Healthcare professionals around the world are realizing that Cloud access is making it easier for them to share and access medical images while away from their office or while they are mobile, giving them more flexibility. Sharing medical images for second opinion, with other experts and even patients is an increasingly important aspect of patient care. Utilizing the cloud to enable sharing allows us to control access to these images without exposing them or violating the privacy of a patient.
While developers and PACS vendors will go the extra mile and try to convince you that their solution is safe and secure, don’t take their word for it. The ugly truth is that your solution can be compromised and hacked if you are not taking the measures to protect your business. It’s incredibly simple to avoid a breach and only takes a moment to implement. Here’s how:
We now have the technology to unlock devices with our faces, but that doesn’t mean that we are immune to data loss as a result of poor image management. Here’s a question, how do you manage your patient medical images? Do you store them in a local hard drive, filing cabinet, image router, or onsite PACS? If you selected any of these options, it is likely that you are possibly one of many victims to data loss, and if not - you still have time to take the measures to protect your patient's private health information (PHI).
When I was growing up, my parents had a traditional mailbox in front of their house. It was an aluminum box painted with flowers that sat upon a wooden post. I can still recall looking out the window and knowing that the mail person had come and gone because the outgoing flag was no longer raised. Today, the cutesy mailboxes are a thing of the past. In fact, their mass exodus has led to the influx of boxes that have physical lock and keys. Why? Not to be dramatic, but it’s because your mail is not safe, and if you are sending or receiving medical records and images through that very mailbox, you’re at great risk.
