As technology continues to be deeply entrenched in our everyday lives, this increased involvement is paralleled in the healthcare industry. The healthcare sector relies on technology to bring people and processes together and the maintenance of a wide variety of their operations. However, the integration of technology is not seamless as the industry finds itself tackling its biggest challenge: security.
Why is data stored by healthcare organisations?
The healthcare sectors rely on technology to store a wide range of data and information. This information is stored in cloud computing tools and applications such as data storages, servers, databases, networking and software. These tools are usually provided by third-party cloud service providers.
As patient data availability is one of the most predominant needs in the healthcare industry, cloud technologies like mobile apps, patient portals, electronic medical records, devices with Internet of Things (IoT) and big data analytics are often used.
This is advantageous to both patients and healthcare providers: cloud computing allows smooth and convenient collaboration between users, reduced costs, increased speed, scalability, and flexibility. Moreover, it also significantly reduces in-house infrastructural and operational costs in healthcare organisations.
However, like many things, the system is imperfect and a greater reliance on IT brings added security risks and vulnerability to cyberattacks.
Data Breaches
The biggest security concern in the healthcare industry is data breaches. Affected by the highest volumes of cyberattacks, approximately 51% of healthcare organisations have experienced external data breaches since 2022. This illustrates the crucial need for strong data protection measures and significant investment of resources to secure sensitive healthcare data.
Although the number of accidental and intentional data breaches by employees as well as distributed denial-of-service (DDoS) ransomware attacks have remained the same in the last three years, there remains more to be done to ensure that the number of data breaches remains minimal.
This is because the impacts of data breaches are far-reaching: sensitive patient information such as social security numbers, health insurance information and even credit card numbers are compromised. This puts healthcare providers at risk of violating legislation and getting regulatory penalties. Additionally, there may be potential lawsuits from patients that incur huge amounts of legal fees. Healthcare providers are also at risk of losing patients.
Solutions
Since data security is one of the biggest priorities in the healthcare industry, it is important to engage IT services such as advanced security measures, and 24/7 monitoring and support to help protect data. Enhanced security measures will ensure that the provider is at less risk of a data breach.
In addition, proactive monitoring and maintenance helps ensure that these IT systems run smoothly. This is to minimise the possibilities of system failures and any related downtime which can bring serious consequences as patients’ lives are dependent on the IT systems running properly. With good maintenance measures in place, potential issues can be addressed and solved before they exacerbate.
Conclusion
When it comes to choosing a provider of IT infrastructure and clinical solutions for the healthcare sector, BCN Group is the best choice in the market. They have a heritage of delivering outcome-based solutions across Analytics, Automation, and Cloud-based services and currently support over 80 healthcare organisations across three continents.
If you are looking for an exceptional and reliable healthcare IT solution provider, visit BCN Group today to learn more about their services and get a quote.
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