Medical Records Security Paper

In my paper, I am going to explain technology threats that an organization might face with having medical records put on a database. I am also going to explain the information that will be protected in medical records on the database. I will also go over all the latest security measures available to help keep these databases threat free so the medical records will be safe on the computer. I will also explain what I would do to help keep my organizations medical records secure.When an organization has a staff ratio of one person to 100 people that can lead the organization to big trouble as far as following rules and procedures that need to be followed as far as following important rules like patient privacy and security. Having a staff ratio that small can lead to short cuts by staff to get things done faster and that can lead to mess ups like pulling up someone else’s medical record or giving someone the wrong prescription. That is why it is so important to make sure the staf f to patient ratio is adequate to meet all the needs of the organization.If the staff to patient ratio is adequate staff will slow down and do things right because if they do not they will be in a lot of trouble. There are a number of threats that effect organizations that maintain electronic medical records [ (Jeanty, 2010) ]. These threats come from both internal and external sources and from both those with malicious and maligned intent. The potential exists that individuals with malicious intent have the potential to attempt to access the records, and there exists the potential for records to be accessed/changed unintentionally.There are a number of different threats that can happen on a database an example would be a virus or a bug. Organizations need to be careful about these sorts of things and get software for their computers to keep their databases free of these parasites. Especially if they have people’s medical records on their computers. The major concern with med ical records in the electronic realm is the protection of a patient's privacy and confidentiality [ (U. S. Department of Health and Human Services) ]. The privacy of documents on digital format is always vulnerable to threat.Luckily, today's electronic medical record programs come with built in security measures such as passwords, firewalls and various other security functions. What is especially important in the arena of medical records is the integrity of the respective medical record. Errors in a medical record could be fatal. The likelihood of errors could also increase when many people have the ability to enter data into a record. Therefore, who has access and the control of access to the medical records is imperative. That is why only doctors should have access to their patient’s records because they are the ones treating them.That way only one person will have access to medical records and not a whole bunch of people. That will help minimize errors on medical records. In regards to information  maintained in medical records that needs to be protected, the utmost importance is the patient's personal information to include their SSN, and other personal information. However, the patient medical information is important to protect as well. In a large sense, it is important to protect the confidentiality of the patient medical history, but more importantly, it is important to protect the integrity of the data.In order to keep my organizations medical records secure I would have the necessary software to keep my database running smooth. I would also have security measures put in place on the database as passwords put on in order to access patient records. I would also only have doctor’s access medical records because they are the ones that treat the patients and they are the ones that should have access to them not everyone else. That will help minimize all problems associated with medical record privacy. Conclusion Protecting a patientâ€℠¢s medical records is the most important thing that n organization must do for the patient. Patients medical records represent who they are, organizations must understand that, and live up to all the Hipaa rules that are put in place to protect people from patient invasion of privacy. Think about it how would you like it if people were invading your privacy by looking at your medical records when you did not want them to.References Jeanty, J. (2010, August 10). HIPAA Rules That Affect Technology. Retrieved from www. ehow. com. U. S. Department of Health and Human Services. (n. d. ). Regulations. Retrieved from www. hhs. gov.