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Telemedicine: The Hidden Risks
Telemedicine Defined
Telemedicine, which the American Telemedicine Association defines as “the
use of medical information exchanged from one site to another via electronic
communications to improve a patient’s clinical health status,” promises to
transform the landscape of health care. Due to the growing population of the
elderly, the increasing demand for health care services and the rapid advances
in telecommunications technology, a roaring market demand for telemedicine
has been created along with the means of satisfying it.
Telemedicine promises to become even more widespread in the coming
years—erasing geographic barriers to place general practitioners and
world-class specialists in the same virtual room. However, new opportunities
present new risks, and some are less obvious than others.
Protecting Patient Privacy
Patient privacy is of paramount concern for all health care providers, and
telemedicine only makes that concern more important. Telemedicine is
contingent upon the quick and reliable transmission of electronic health
records (EHR), which creates an inherent risk of a patient privacy breach.
Patient privacy needs to be secured at every point of access. Consider the
following individuals who may have access to your network:
• Doctors, nurses and other employees who use telecommunications
equipment
• Employees responsible for moving, storing and servicing
telecommunications equipment
• IT personnel – either in-house or contracted out – who perform service or
maintenance on networks, systems and equipment
• Guests and patients who are provided with Wi-Fi access
Administrators should work with in-house
personnel to ensure every precaution has been
taken to secure sensitive patient information. It’s
also important to remember that these points of
access exist at both the originating and distant
site, and that both sites will have to work in
conjunction to ensure that every effort has been
made to protect patient privacy.
(See Telemedicine on page 6)
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Adviser a publication of LeadingAge New York | Summer 2016