Question

Think about a time when you were hired for a position. Did you receive an employee handbook or contract agreement? As a Healthcare Manager, what HR strategies would you use to prevent HIPAA violations?

Answer 1

The time when I was hired as an intern employee immediately after my course, I was handed a contract agreement along with a handbook of rules and regulations of the company as well as the offer letter with the particular job description.

HIPAA refers to the "Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act" which refers to the privacy policy of the health related information of a patient. HIPAA privacy rule can be violated with just one action of a single employee of an organisation. The violation will not only threatens that particular person but will endanger all the entire organisation. Even a small rule under HIPAA is violated by any means will result in a very big compensation to be done by the entire organisation which might be in the form of monetary fine or through the bad reputation in the society. As a Healthcare Manager, there are various strategies which can be used to prevent hipaa violations, such are discussed below:

- the first one includes the proper training and education of all the staffs present in the hospital about the HIPAA privacy rule and the ways to follow it. It is the duty of the manager to identify their knowledge about the HIPAA policy and to ensure the adequate amount to be provided as well as informing any changes that occurs within HIPAA. The employees should be priorly informed about the consequences which can be faced when the HIPAA policy is broken. It can be to the individual as well as the company in which he is working . All the staffs present should be provided with the knowledge related to the HIPPA policy and how it should be handled.

- next one includes, the restriction in using mobile phones: the manager should have an idea of the use of mobile phones for necessary purpose, but when the person misuses this electronic device should have a serious action made against them. The manager should make a rule where the mobile devices should be restricted inside any of the patient's ward or near the case sheets. The health care personnel may click the picture for the purpose of showing off or for follow up but it is not acceptable hence a penalty or punishment should be given to that person.

-- keeping anything which has patients information in it away from the reach of the public, this way the information cannot be slipped out.

- next includes destroying of the paper files that had been maintained for the patient and his records were kept. Once all the information are securely transferred into the system, the paper ones should be completely destroyed beyond the reach of the other people.

- the manager should make an effort to check if all the files are already stored properly and is not misplaced anywhere by anyone. If the file is not present immediately an action should be taken for the nurse incharge of that particular patient.

- they should monitor the action of their employees in the social media groups. They should know if the patient's information are being shared or posted by the health care team. This should be avoided.

Hence, in my opinion these strategies should be used by the healthcare manager in order to avoid HIPAA privacy rule violation.