HIPAA Compliance With Content Central

When it comes to healthcare, privacy is rule number one. It’s such an important rule that in 1996 the US Department of Health and Human Services created HIPAA, the Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act.

If you handle protected health information, (PHI or ePHI for “electronic” data), you probably already know about being HIPAA compliant.

In fact, the one thing you’re most aware of is that if you fail to meet compliance you’ll be facing hefty fines, criminal charges, or even jail time… so getting this right is your top priority.

The hard part about HIPAA compliance is knowing exactly what it takes to meet their standards with whatever software you choose, but it doesn’t have to be. It’s actually pretty simple from the software side, which should help you narrow in on the one you want to purchase pretty quickly. When you boil it down, HIPAA is asking for 4 things with all these rules and regulations.

• Put safeguards in place to protect PHI and ePHI.

• Reasonably limit use and sharing of information to the minimum number of people necessary to accomplish your goal.

• Have agreements in place (BAAs) to ensure service providers that perform covered functions for you do not disclose PHI and safeguard it appropriately.

• Have procedures in place to limit access to PHI and a training program in place to train employees on protecting this sensitive information.

When it comes to picking a document management system, there’s several features you’ll need in order to meet compliancy. Individual software might call these by different names, but in the end you’ll be looking for features that provide

• Unique User Identification

• Password Protection

• Automatic Logoff

• Transmitting Data Encryption and Decryption

• Complete Electronic History of Documents

• System Event Logging

• Login Monitoring

If you’re using your DMS provider to host your system on the cloud, then you’ll also be looking for the requirements for Physical Safeguards like

• Data Backups

• Facility Access Controls (Physical Security)

○ Disaster Recovery Plan

○ Redundant Power Servers

○ Video Surveillance

○ Fire Suppressant

○ Limited Access to Servers

When it’s all said and done, you’ll be looking for much more out of your DMS than just an electronic version of a file cabinet. You’re looking for a robust and simple solution that meets all your needs at one low price. One that’s fast to implement, has all the features you need, with a snappy user interface that’s easy to use and understand. Content Central will keep your office moving with features that do more than just help you meet HIPAA compliance. But don’t just take our word for it, give it a try yourself and see your customized solution in action.