course materials

1. Assignment: Security of Health Care Records
Assignment: Security of Health Care Records ON Assignment: Security of Health Care
RecordsWith the increase of health information technology used to store and access patient
information, the likelihood of security breaches has also risen. In fact, according to
the Canadian Medical Association Journal (CMAJ):In the United States, there was a
whopping 97% increase in the number of health records breached from 2010 to 2011… The
number of patient records accessed in each breach has also increased substantially, from
26,968 (in 2010) to 49,394 (in 2011). Since August 2009, when the US government
regulated that any breach affecting more than 500 patients be publicly disclosed, a total of
385 breaches, involving more than 19 million records, have been reported to the
Department of Health and Human Services. Assignment: Security of Health Care RecordsA
large portion of those breaches, 39%, occurred because of a lost, stolen, or otherwise
compromised portable electronic device—a problem that will likely only get worse as iPads,
smartphones, and other gadgets become more common in hospitals. (CMAJ, 2012, p.
E215).Consider your own experiences. Does your organization use portable electronic
devices? What safeguards are in place to ensure the security of data and patient
information? For this Discussion you consider ethical and security issues surrounding the
protection of digital health information.To prepareReview the Learning Resources dealing
with the security of digital health care information. Reflect on your own organization or one
with which you are familiar, and think about how health information stored electronically is
protected.Consider the nurse’s responsibility to ensure the protection of patient
information. What strategies can you use?Reflect on ethical issues that are likely to arise
with the increased access to newer, smaller, and more powerful technology tools.Consider
strategies that can be implemented to ensure that the use of HIT contributes to an overall
culture of safety.BY DAY 3Post an analysis of the nurse’s responsibility to protect patient
information and the extent that HIT has made it easier or more difficult to protect patient
privacy. Comment on any security or ethical issues related to the use of portable devices to
store information. Assess the strategies your organization uses to safeguard patient
information and how these promote a culture of safety. Describe an area where
improvement is needed and one strategy that could address the situation. Assignment:
Security of Health Care RecordsLearning ResourcesNote: To access this week’s required
library resources, please click on the link to the Course Readings List, found in theCourse
Materials section of your Syllabus.REQUIRED READINGSMcGonigle, D., & Mastrian, K. G.
(2015). Nursing informatics and the foundation of knowledge (3rd ed.). Burlington, MA:

2. Jones and Bartlett Learning.Chapter 5, “Ethical Applications of Informatics”This chapter
examines the ethical dilemmas that arise in nursing informatics. The authors explore the
responsibilities for the ethical use of health information technology.Review Chapter 23
“Research: Data Collection, Processing, and Analytics” (pp. 415–416)In this section, the
author explains information fair use and copyright restrictions. The section describes
processes for ensuring the security of a computer network.Brown, B. (2009a). Improving
the privacy and security of personal health records. Journal of Health Care Compliance,
11(2), 39–40, 68.Retrieved from the Walden Library databases.The author of this article
examines the use of the document titled “Nationwide Privacy and Security Framework for
Electronic Exchange of Individually Identified Health Information.” The article describes
how the framework aims to construct an approach to address the privacy and security
challenges that come with health information exchanges and personal health
records.Dimitropoulos, L., Patel, V., Scheffler, S. A., & Posnack, S. (2011). Public attitudes
toward health information exchange: Perceived benefits and concerns. American Journal of
Managed Care, 17, SP111–SP116.Retrieved from the Walden Library databases.This article
describes a study that sought to determine the attitude of consumers toward electronic
health information exchanges (HIE), HIE privacy and security concerns, and the relationship
between these concerns and the perceived benefits of HIE. The authors recommend
solutions to some of the privacy challenges stimulated by HIE.Goodman, K. W. (2010).
Ethics, information technology, and public health: New challenges for the clinician-patient
relationship. Journal of Law, Medicine & Ethics, 38(1), 58–63.Retrieved from the Walden
Library databases.In this article, the authors focus on how nurses can use health
information technology to help transform health care using the recommendations included
in the 2010 Institute of Medicine report “The Future of Nursing, Leading Change, Advancing
Health.” The author also discusses the 2011 National Strategy for Quality Improvement in
Health Care.Hoffman, S., & Podgurski, A. (2011). Meaningful use and certification of health
information technology: What about safety? Journal of Law, Medicine & Ethics, 39(3), 425–
436.Retrieved from the Walden Library databases.This article stresses the necessity of
sufficient safeguards for EHR systems. The author explores current safety regulations for
EHR system design and deployment. The author makes additional recommendations for
protecting public health in the digital area.Rothstein, M. A. (2010). The Hippocratic bargain
and health information technology. Journal of Law, Medicine & Ethics, 38(1), 7–13.Retrieved
from the Walden Library databases.The increasing availability of sensitive patient
information granted by electronic health records has generated significant debate about
patient privacy. This article examines the potential ethical and legal consequences of
patient-directed sequestering of sensitive health information.OPTIONAL
RESOURCESBrown, B. (2009b). Privacy provisions of the American Recovery and
Reinvestment Act. Journal of Health Care Compliance, 11(3), 37–38, 72–73.Assignment:
Security of Health Care Records