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Course "Texting and E-mail with Patients: Patient Requests and Complying with HIPAA " has been pre-approved by RAPS as eligible for up to 12 credits towards a participant's RAC recertification upon full completion. Overview: With the recent advances in portable technology, more and more organizations and their users are taking advantage of mobile devices to save time and get work done more efficiently. Texting, portable e-mail, and Apps are revolutionizing the ways health care providers interact with their patients and get their work done. But the use of these devices comes with hidden costs of compliance, especially if they lead to a reportable breach under HIPAA or state laws. HIPAA Privacy and Security Officers have been struggling to keep up with the use of the devices to protect patient privacy and avoid compliance issues. Even if these devices aren't in formal use in your organization, you need to act now to anticipate their use and make sure they are used properly. This session is designed to provide intensive, two-day training in HIPAA compliance as it relates to the use of mobile devices, including how to use them with Protected Health Information, the policies and procedures you need to have in place to use them securely, and how to manage issues of the "BYOD" phenomenon. The session provides the background and details for any manager of health information privacy and security to know what issues to look for with mobile devices, what needs to be done for HIPAA compliance, and what can happen when compliance is not adequate. Audits and enforcement will be explained, as well as privacy and security breaches and how to prevent them. Numerous references and sample documents will be provided. The session will be valuable for both newcomers to HIPAA compliance as well as seasoned veterans. HIPAA compliance will be explained and discussed in detail, from the basics through the latest changes and new technology issues, so that the attendee will have a coherent u

Overview: With the recent advances in portable technology, more and more organizations and their users are taking advantage of mobile devices to save time and get work done more efficiently. Texting, portable e-mail, and Apps are revolutionizing the ways health care providers interact with their patients and get their work done. But the use of these devices comes with hidden costs of compliance, especially if they lead to a reportable breach under HIPAA or state laws. HIPAA Privacy and Security Officers have been struggling to keep up with the use of the devices to protect patient privacy and avoid compliance issues. Even if these devices aren't in formal use in your organization, you need to act now to anticipate their use and make sure they are used properly. This session is designed to provide intensive, two-day training in HIPAA compliance as it relates to the use of mobile devices, including how to use them with Protected Health Information, the policies and procedures you need to have in place to use them securely, and how to manage issues of the "BYOD" phenomenon. The session provides the background and details for any manager of health information privacy and security to know what issues to look for with mobile devices, what needs to be done for HIPAA compliance, and what can happen when compliance is not adequate. Audits and enforcement will be explained, as well as privacy and security breaches and how to prevent them. Numerous references and sample documents will be provided. The session will be valuable for both newcomers to HIPAA compliance as well as seasoned veterans. HIPAA compliance will be explained and discussed in detail, from the basics through the latest changes and new technology issues, so that the attendee will have a coherent understanding of not only the rules, but also how to think about compliance and make sound compliance decisions on a day-to-day basis in the context of mobile devices. Agenda Day One Day one sets the stage with an ov

Course "The A to Z's of HIPAA Privacy, Security, and Breach Notification Rules" has been pre-approved by RAPS as eligible for up to 12 credits towards a participant's RAC recertification upon full completion. Overview: This session is designed to provide intensive, two-day training in HIPAA compliance, including what's new in the regulations, what's changed recently, and what needs to be addressed for compliance by covered entities and business associates. The session provides the background and details for any manager of healthcare information privacy and security to know what are the most important privacy and security issues, what needs to be done for HIPAA compliance, and what can happen when compliance is not adequate. Audits and enforcement will be explained, as well as privacy and security breaches and how to prevent them. Numerous references and sample documents will be provided. Who Will Benefit: * Information Security Officers * Risk Managers * Compliance Officers * Privacy Officers * Health Information Managers * Information Technology Managers * Medical Office Managers * Chief Financial Officers * Systems Managers * Legal Counsel * Operations Directors Agenda: Day One Day one sets the stage with an overview of the HIPAA regulations and then continues with presentation of the specifics of the Privacy Rule, recent changes to the rules, and the basics of the Security Rule Lecture 1: Overview of HIPAA Regulations * The Origins and Purposes of HIPAA * Privacy Rule History and Objectives * Security Rule History and Objectives * Breach Notification Requirements, Benefits, and Results Lecture 2: HIPAA Privacy Rule Principles, Policies and Procedures * Patient Rights under HIPAA * Limitations on Uses and Disclosures * Required Policies and Procedures * Training and Documentation Requirements Lecture 3: Recent and Proposed Changes to the HIPAA Rules * New Penalty Structure * New HIPAA Audit Program * New Patient Rights

Immunoassays, or DNA assays, are a method of DNA analysis. DNA is the basis of all biological material, including the DNA of living organisms, cells, and tissues. This method can be used to analyze, identify, and profile various biological samples. The analysis of DNA has developed greatly over the years, due to the ability to conduct DNA tests on living people. The use of immunoassays for gene-based analysis has grown tremendously. Primarily, immunoassay analysis is used to evaluate gene-based treatments in oncology, cardiovascular, orthopedics, infectious diseases, and clinical diagnostics. Currently, the primary uses of immunoassays are for the evaluation of gene-based therapies in oncology and cardiovascular clinical trials. The analysis and measurement of immune parameters by immunoassay instruments are known as response curve analysis (RCA). The first analysis of RCA was done by Ward and coworkers in 1980, using monoclonal antibodies to stimulate the lymphocytes Subsequent immunoassay measurement models and systems have been developed to extend the scope of research and to make immunoassay measurement more cost-effective. Read more @ https://coherentmarketinsights-cmi.blogspot.com/2020/12/immunoassay-instrument-is-gaining-rapid.html

Course "Risk Analysis and Design of Experiments (DOE) in Process Validation and Development" has been pre-approved by RAPS as eligible for up to 12 credits towards a participant's RAC recertification upon full completion. Overview: This course is designed to help scientists and engineers plan and conduct experiments and analyze the data to develop predictive models used to optimize processes and products and solve complex problems. DOE is an extremely efficient method to understand which variables (and interactions) affect key outcomes and allows the development of mathematical models used to optimize process and product performance. The models also provide an understanding of the impact of variability in controllable and uncontrollable factors on important responses. The concepts behind DOE are covered along with some effective types of screening experiments. Case studies will also be presented to illustrate the use of the methods. This highly interactive course will allow participants the opportunity to practice applying DOE techniques with various data sets. The objective is to provide participants with the key tools and knowledge to be able to apply the methods effectively in their process and product development efforts. Why should you attend: · Plan and conduct experiments in an effective and efficient manner · Apply good experimental practices when conducting studies · Determine statistical significance of main and interaction effects · Interpret significant main and interaction effects · Develop predictive models to explain and optimize process/product behavior · Check models for validity · Utilize models for one or more responses to find optimal solutions · Apply very efficient fractional factorial designs in screening experiments · Apply response surface designs for

Overview: The webinar will concentrate on topics that HHS has announced will be the focus of the first round of "desk audits". They reflect significant areas of non-compliance revealed in the 2012 pilot audits and HHS HIPAA violation investigations concluded by Resolution Agreements and Corrective Action Plans. They include: HIPAA Risk Analysis Risk Management based on Risk Analysis Breach Notification Notice of Privacy Practices (for Covered Entities) Minimum Necessary Standard Access of Individuals to their PHI Authorizations Workforce Training This webinar is vital because, in focusing on preparation for a HIPAA Compliance Audit, Covered Entities and Business Associates may review, prioritize and structure their HIPAA Compliance programs. If you have HIPAA Compliance documentation ready to submit on two weeks notice to HHS you are implementing an effective HIPAA Compliance program. In addition, every Covered Entity or Business Associate may face an HHS HIPAA Compliance investigation at any time due to a complaint or a Breach. If you are "audit ready" you will be ready for an investigation - and better able to avoid complaints and prevent breaches. Why should you attend: Every Covered Entity and Business Associate is liable - without prior notice - to be audited for HIPAA Compliance by HHS You will have only 2 weeks after receiving your HIPAA Compliance Audit notification and data request to upload all requested documents to an HHS HIPAA Compliance Audit Portal The HIPAA Compliance Audit data request you receive will specify content and file organization, file names and any other document submission requirements Auditors will not contact an audited entity for clarifications or ask for additional information - it is essential that submitted documents are current, accurately reflect the entity's HIPAA Compliance program and demonstrate HIPAA Compliance Only data submitted on time will be assessed Failure to respond on time may be referred to the HHS regional

Course "Fundamentals of Statistical Process Control: Implementation and Assurance of SPC" has been pre-approved by RAPS as eligible for up to 12 credits towards a participant's RAC recertification upon full completion. Overview: This 2-day seminar provides the information you need to use one of the most powerful tools in quality, statistical process control. It will help people in design, quality, and production understand the concepts and effectively implement them. The examples and issues in the seminar come primarily from the medical device industry, but the material is applicable to any production environment. Production process must be controlled to help ensure they are stable. While there are many control methods, the most powerful and often used is statistical process control, SPC. It uses data from the process itself to detect changes - changes that could result from an unstable process. SPC helps determine if a process continues to operate the way it was set up. If not, SPC produces a signal that calls attention to the problem. One very important application is process capability analysis. With a stable process, SPC data can help determine if the process is capable of meeting the product specifications. These are often expressed as process capability indices. Continuous improvement programs can use the information generated by SPC to monitor process variation and identify its causes. These methods can reduce cost, improve product, and enhance customer satisfaction. Why should you attend: Manufacturing companies, especially medical device manufacturers, must control process. Not only is this a regulatory requirement, but is a good business practice. Without a solid understanding of SPC, you put yourself and your company at a disadvantage. On a personal basis, the material in this seminar will help improve your skills; it aligns with the ASQ Body of Knowledge for the Certified Quality Engineer, Green Belt, and Black Belt. These are areas you should master

Overview: Safe hospital care in neither a science nor an art. It is a practice just like the practice by a doctor who combines hindsight of experience and foresight of imagination to come up with an outsight of the best interventions and best protocols. Over time the doctor standardizes the process but is vigilant to any unique requirements of each patient. Such an approach in patient safety is called hazard analysis and mitigation process. This webinar goes a big step farther. It covers innovation strategies to assure that the safety improvements result in a high return on investment and high value to the hospital, and protects the patients. Why should you Attend: About 400,000 patients die each year from hospital mistakes according to a senate hearing. Evidence based methods to reduce adverse, sentinel, and never events are available and successful in aerospace, nuclear, and chemical industries. Why not use them? We need a paradigm shift. We need it in a hurry! You cannot cross the sea merely by standing and staring at the water. Do not be afraid to take a big step if one is indicated. No noble thing can be done without risks Areas Covered in the Session: The Etiologies of Unsafe Care Sufficient Understanding is a Pre-requisite to Safe Care Preventing "Indifferencity" to Enhance Patient Safety Continuous innovation is better than Continuous Improvement Innovations Should Start with Incidence Reports Hazard Analysis Fault Tree Analysis-the Best Tool for Harm Prevention Doing More with Less is Innovation Re-Invent Quality Management Human Errors may be Unpreventable, Preventing Harm is an Innovation Managing Safety: Lessons from Aerospace Protect Patients from Dangers in Medical Devices The Paradigm Pioneers Aequanimitas,The Best Known Strategy for Safe Care Who Will Benefit: Hospital senior management Hospital administrators Doctors Nursing staff Clinical engineers Radiology staff Infection control staff Patient advocates Speaker Profile Dev Raheja

2-day In-person Seminar Applied Statistics, with Emphasis on Risk Management in R&D, QA/QC, and Manufacturing Overview: The 2-day seminar explains how to apply statistics to manage risk in R&D, QA/QC, and Manufacturing, with examples derived mainly from the medical device design/manufacturing industry. The flow of topics over the 2 days is as follows: ISO standards and FDA/MDD regulations regarding the use of statistics. Basic vocabulary and concepts. Statistical Process Control Statistical methods for Design Verification Statistical methods for Product/Process Qualification Metrology: the statistical analysis of measurement uncertainty, and how it is used to establish QC specifications How to craft "statistically valid conclusion statements" (e.g., for reports) Summary, from a risk management perspective Agenda Day One Lecture 1: Regulatory Requirements Lecture 2: Vocabulary and Concepts Lecture 3: Confidence Intervals (attribute and variables data) Lecture 4: Normality Tests and Normality Transformations Lecture 5: Statistical Process Control (with focus on XbarR charts) Lecture 6: Confidence/Reliability calculations for Proportions Lecture 7: Confidence/Reliability calculations for Normally distributed data (K-tables) Lecture 8: Process Capability Indices calculations(Cp, Cpk, Pp, Ppk) Day Two Lecture 1: Confidence/Reliability calculations using Reliability Plotting (e.g., for non-normal data and/or censored studies) Lecture 2: Confidence/Reliability calculations for MTTF and MTBF (this typically applies only to electronic equipment) Lecture 3: Statistical Significance: t-Tests and related "power" estimations Lecture 4: Statistical Significance: ANOVA calculations Lecture 5: Metrology (Gage R&R, Correlation, Linearity, Bias , and Uncertainty Budgets) Lecture 6: QC Sampling Plans (C=0 and Z1.4 attribute AQL plans, and alternatives to such plans) Lecture 7: Statistically valid statements for use in reports Lecture 8: Summary and Impleme

"""Pancreatic Cancer Drug Pipeline Analysis""Pancreatic Cancer Drug Pipeline Analysis" by PNS Pharma gives comprehensive insight on the various drug profiles being developed for the treatment of Pancreatic Cancer. "

Quality Assurance in Nursing Healthcare: Quality assurance in nursing is about assuring quality in nursing by ensuring that practices are compliant with quality standards. This is a full-fledged profession with its own educational and experience requirements. Quality assurance in nursing has to be understood from the standpoint of quality assurance and compliance. Quality assurance in nursing is about ensuring adherence to quality standards as mandated by nursing regulatory bodies. Quality assurance in nursing assesses what healthcare processes are in place and what else needs to be implemented to better the system. Where do quality assurance nurses work? Professionals who make a career out of quality assurance in nursing are employed in various healthcare settings. They could work in clinics or small or large hospitals. Professionals who make a career in quality assurance in nursing are licensed registered nurses. Since they are registered nurses, they should also obtain a licentiate. To get this, they should complete a prerequisite approved nursing program. The exam for getting licensure is the National Council Licensure Examination for Registered Nurses (NCLEX-RN), a computer-based examination. A higher level of education for those in quality assurance in nursing is a master's degrees inhealth care quality or a near degree. In some healthcare organizations, this is required at entry level. Some of the works they do in maintaining quality assurance in nursing include: Reviewing reports or files to make sure that activities contained in them are following regulatory clinical standards Collaborating with colleagues from other departments to which nursing is related either directly or indirectly Interacting with other hospitals or organizations, if the need arises For professionals pursuing a career in quality assurance in nursing, the ability to analyze data and manage cases is a must, as a major part of their work involves these. They should also be prompt abou

Overview: This webinar will cover everything that you need to know about how to handle HIPAA security incidents, breaches, and complaints and the Department of Health and Human Resources Investigations thereof. Not all security incidents are breaches, but all breaches of confidentiality are within the broad ambit of security incidents. Privacy rule violations, such as failing to give a patient a copy of his or her medical records, may also constitute a breach as the $4.2 million fine assessed against Cignet Healthcare of Prince George's County, Maryland, dramatically proved. Handling an investigation properly is key to determining not only how to handle it to mitigate any harm and to take action to prevent it from happening again but also to determine whether it is reportable to affected individuals and to DHHS. HIPAA requires a complaint procedure (policy). The webinar will suggest what such a document should contain as it also will for the required report procedure (what is reportable, who reports, to whom, and required/suggested contents of the report) and the required response procedure (what do the responsible officials do after receiving the report or the complaint). Investigating a possible security incident is key. The webinar will cover how to conduct a thorough investigation of HIPAA security incidents, breaches, and patient complaints. Finally, the second largest HIPAA civil money penalty or settlement, $4.2 million, was in large part due to the offender's failure to cooperate with the DHHS investigation. The presenter has successfully defended his clients in seven such investigations and knows how to respond to them to avoid or minimize liability. Think of a gap analysis as an examination of: What you currently have in place for HIPAA compliance. Is that adequate? Can it be done better? Is it enough? And what am I missing? Asking these questions will help establish the direction and next steps to take. It lays the ground work for a good Risk Analys

Overview: Participants will learn how to conduct an investigation of allegations of patient privacy violations using a privacy "risk analysis" tool and steps that should be taken when a breach has been determined. Why should you Attend: You must conduct a prompt and thorough investigation of all allegations of privacy violations. A violation of a patient's privacy may result in monetary penalties, harm to your reputation and especially harm to a patient. You need to make certain your organization has the expertise to conduct a thorough privacy investigation, analyze the results and take all necessary action to mitigate and report violations when required. Areas Covered in the Session: Best practices for conducting a privacy investigation Use of the risk analysis tool Interpretation of your results Reporting requirements if necessary Recommendations of continued privacy monitoring Workforce training Who Will Benefit: Healthcare providers Compliance and Internal Audit professionals or office staff responsible for ensuring patient privacy Healthcare Administrators Business Associates and all HIPAA Covered Entities Speaker Profile : Gail Madison Brown is a registered nurse and an attorney with over 25 years of experience in health care. For the last 15 years she has focused on health care compliance and revenue cycle management operations. Gail's experience ranges from starting new compliance programs and making improvements to existing programs for physician practices to large health care organizations. Gail also has provided numerous lectures to healthcare providers, executives and professional colleagues. Gail Madison Brown will develop, implement, and oversee processes, systems, educational programs, and other activities necessary to support and grow clinical trials activities at the UT Health Science Center. The Chief Clinical Trails Officer (CCTO) provides overall strategic leadership in this area including planning, goal setting, and monitoring organ

Overview: Remember spaghetti code? The HIPAA breach area is now almost as convoluted and overlapping and confusing as spaghetti code. Sometimes you think you are both coming and going at the same time when you think through an event to determine if your organization has had a breach. For example: Is a security incident always a beach? Is an ePHI breach a security incident as well? Is a cybersecurity event always a breach? What if it does not steal any clinical information, diagnoses or procedures information, or any payment information? A security incident? Or both? Are all the necessary kinds of notice in the Breach rule? What is Cybersecurity Insurance? Is it really the finger in the dike or itself full of Swiss cheese? Can the loss of patient or member data be a HIPAA breach and identity theft plus a fraud issue? Why should you Attend: HIPAA breaches now number in the multiple thousands, if not multiple millions. Your organization needs to be prepared for the initial sense of panic, a complete investigation, and the federal, state and reputational costs of a mega breach. A breach now costs in money approximately $225/record. And this does not include any fine of any type. The loss and theft of 1000 records may cost you organization from a quarter to $1 M, or more, and 6 months to a year to resolve. You need to know the basics of what PHI and ePHI really are; what puts the event into the breach safe harbor, what breach exceptions keeps the event out of OCR's hands, what the 4 factors are and how they are used. You need to know that your organization's breach plan and your policies and procedures include the need to notify when necessary the police, the FBI and other state and federal organizations beyond the Office for Civil Rights. Your organization needs to know how to protect itself after the fact by considering Cybersecurity Insurance. Areas Covered in the Session: Definition and reporting of a Security Incident Definition of a breach Breach Guidance Br

Overview: This webinar will cover everything that you need to know about how to handle HIPAA security incidents, breaches, and complaints and the Department of Health and Human Resources Investigations thereof. Not all security incidents are breaches, but all breaches of confidentiality are within the broad ambit of security incidents. Privacy rule violations, such as failing to give a patient a copy of his or her medical records, may also constitute a breach as the $4.2 million fine assessed against Cignet Healthcare of Prince George's County, Maryland, dramatically proved. Handling an investigation properly is key to determining not only how to handle it to mitigate any harm and to take action to prevent it from happening again but also to determine whether it is reportable to affected individuals and to DHHS. HIPAA requires a complaint procedure (policy). The webinar will suggest what such a document should contain as it also will for the required report procedure (what is reportable, who reports, to whom, and required/suggested contents of the report) and the required response procedure (what do the responsible officials do after receiving the report or the complaint). Investigating a possible security incident is key. The webinar will cover how to conduct a thorough investigation of HIPAA security incidents, breaches, and patient complaints. Finally, the second largest HIPAA civil money penalty or settlement, $4.2 million, was in large part due to the offender's failure to cooperate with the DHHS investigation. The presenter has successfully defended his clients in seven such investigations and knows how to respond to them to avoid or minimize liability. Think of a gap analysis as an examination of: What you currently have in place for HIPAA compliance. Is that adequate? Can it be done better? Is it enough? And what am I missing? Asking these questions will help establish the direction and next steps to take. It lays the ground work for a good Risk Analy

Overview: New changes modifying the HIPAA Privacy and Security Regulations are going into place to meet the privacy and security mandates within the HITECH Act in the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009. The changes include establishing new rights for individuals as well as changes to the limitations on uses and disclosures. New requirements for patient access to records and requirements to notify individuals in the event of a breach are only two of the many areas affected in the new law, including new requirements for restriction and accounting of disclosures and increased enforcement activity. Covered entities that use electronic health records (EHRs) will need to meet new access and disclosure rules and all kinds of business associates and their subcontractors will need to establish compliance programs. And if you are required to have a HIPAA Notice of Privacy Practices, you will need to update that to show all the new rights that patients will have, such as electronic copies, new rights to restrict disclosures, and much more. Business associates are now directly covered by the HIPAA privacy and security regulations and are liable for fines and penalties if they do not comply. If a business associate supplies services that interact with the new changes to the rules, the BA will need to be aware of the new requirements. We will explain what a Business Associate needs to do differently under the new regulations. Electronic records have new demands placed on them, in both providing access and in accounting for all disclosures of health information - the electronic age in health care brings new obligations to serve individuals as well as manage health information for healthcare professionals. We will discuss how disclosures must be tracked in an EHR and review the various ways patient records can be supplied electronically. The new regulations will be reviewed and their effects on usual practices will be discussed, as will what policies need to be chang

HIPAA Survival Guide: The HIPAA Survival Guide is a set of practical help guides that seek to make compliance with HIPAA and HITECH easy for providers. This kit is some kind of checklist on what to keep in mind and implement to survive a HIPAA audit. The HIPAA Survival Guide was created as a need to comply with the HIPAA audit requirements. It evolved as a response to simplifying the HIPAA Privacy Rule and HIPAA Security Rule without its legal complexity. In other words, the framers of this Guide have developed this concept strictly as a guide, rather than as a legally enforceable set of rules. "Forest from the trees" approach: The HIPAA Survival Guide came into being in order to help users understand HIPAA and HITECH better. The approach the developers of this Guide adapted was what was called the "forest from the trees" way, because the aim was to help users navigate and wade through the complex text. It was aimed at helping them chaff and finesse the parts that required their compliance into simple terms. HIPAA Survival Guide is thus not a strict, legislative Act that lays down rules for conformity. No wonder, it was developed by the joint efforts of a Registered Nurse and an Attorney, who wanted to facilitate a greater understanding of the legislation's audit requirements. The basis on which this Guide came into existence was the HIPAA and HITECH background. It concerns itself with only the part of HIPAA and HITECH relating to a part of Covered Entities, namely providers. This is deliberate, since the aim of this Guide is to help small providers with guidelines aimed at simplifying their task. Important steps for HIPAA survival: The fundamental goal of the HIPAA Survival Guide is to equip providers with the knowledge of what needs to be kept in order and fine-tuned if they have to meet regulatory requirements. These are the thumb rules for the HIPAA Survival Guide: Documenting the provider's privacy, security and breach policies and revie

Overview:   Institute for Healthcare Improvement (IHI) defines reliability as "failure-free performance over time2". This is simple enough to be understood by anyone. The aim is to have no failures over an extended time period in spite of variability in the patient environment. spite of variability in the patient environment.  This is in line with the technical definition of reliability as the probability of successful performance of intended functions for a specified length of time under a specified user (patient) environment. In a system where the severity of consequences is high, such as in hospitals, the goal is to achieve reliability as close to 100% as possible. This is called failure-free performance. Some hospitals have achieved this goal for specific medical procedures for several quarters. Can they extend this performance over years instead of quarters? That is the challenge we need to face and find elegant solutions zero mistakes or find a way to protect patients if a mistake cannot be prevented.  Why should you Attend: The failures of the U.S. healthcare system are enormous considering the severity of failures. As much as 400,000 patients die each year from hospital mistakes. Another 2.1 are harmed from nosocomial infections (infections acquired during hospital stay). The cost is in billions. Discussions with doctors show that there is reluctance to apply reliability principles to healthcare systems because the variability in healthcare is enormous compared to the aviation and industrial fields. Each customer (patient) is different and each illness is unique in its own way. Then there are interconnecting systems such as cardiology, gynecology, gastroenterology, emergency medicine, oncology, and patient data from various doctors, pagers, computers, vendor software, and intensive care, each operating independently most of the time. But good approaches to improving the system reliability have been tried and tested in many industries. There is a

Overview: In this session we will discuss the HIPAA audit and enforcement programs and how they work, and discuss the areas that caused the most issues in prior audits. We will explore what kind of issues and what kind of entities had the most problems, and show where entities need to improve their compliance the most. We will also explore the typical risk issues that lead to breaches of health information and see how those issues may be a target for auditors in the new 2016 audits. We will review the contents of the HIPAA Audit Protocol used in 2012 to show what documentation needs to be on hand should your organization be selected for an audit in the new round. We will present methods for using the contents of the HIPAA Audit Protocol to build your own compliance plan by extracting and updating the contents and relating your compliance activities directly to the questions that might be asked. In this session we will discuss the HIPAA audit and enforcement regulations and processes, and how they apply to HIPAA covered entities and business associates. We will explain the enforcement regulations and the new, increased fines and new penalty levels, including new penalties for willful neglect of compliance that begin at $10,000. We will discuss what information and documentation must be prepared in advance so that you can be ready for an audit at any time, including sample information request forms and questions asked at prior audits. The session will also cover how to know if you may become the subject of an audit or enforcement action, and what you can do to help limit your exposure. We will discuss how most enforcement actions come about and what can be done to prevent incidents that lead to enforcement activity. The HIPAA Privacy, Security, and Breach Notification regulations (and the recent changes to them) and how they will be audited will be explained. Documentation requirements for compliance will be explored and a framework of security policies necessary

Health Information Security Compliance: Health information security compliance requirements from HIPAA keep risk management at the core. These requirements also have other guidelines. Health information security compliance is a vital requirement for healthcare providers. Healthcare professionals have to ensure security and privacy of Protected Health Information (PHI) and Electronic Protected Health Information (ePHI), which are part of Electronic Health Records (EHR). The guidelines, rules and requirements are mandated by HIPAA, which is in charge of ensuring that there is privacy and security of health information. Challenges associated with health information security compliance The very fact that a lot of health information is stored in electronic records makes health information security compliance all the more challenging. The way in which information flows between various players in the sector is also a factor: shared computers and information sharing with third party associates like laboratories and billers. If a healthcare organization is not compliant with health information security, it could be held indirectly responsible for issues arising out of these. HIPAA has regulations and guidelines on how providers can keep PHI and ePHI. It suggests and strongly recommends risk analysis as the basis for health information security compliance. These are set out in the Meaningful Use requirements. Some of risk analysis methods include or relate to the following: The provider's EHR software and hardware Assessment of whether the provider's practice protocols are adequate Risk assessment of the provider's physical setting and environment Risk assessment relating to staff education and training A thorough examination of EHR access controls Risk management relating to contracts with the provider's Business Associates The healthcare provider's practices in relation to patient relations and communications Physical measures for ensuring health information security c