GT and ZR are the two main new-patient schedulers for a busy medical practice. There are many shared tasks in their jobs. It is convenient for them to check each other’s electronic health record (EHR) office messages. To enable this, they have given one another their personal passwords on the system. This seemed to work well—until a problem arose. It was found that a user of … [Read more...] about Case Study: The Perils of Password Sharing
Using Health Care IT
Case Study: Dr. SY Did the Credentialing
SY handled credentialing for a practice for several years but has recently retired from the practice. All of the recredentialing notifications went through SY’s office, primarily through her email address. When a new employee was hired to replace SY, no one forwarded her emails to a new active account. Because of this error, recredentialing for a major insurance company expired … [Read more...] about Case Study: Dr. SY Did the Credentialing
Cybersecurity for Medical Practices
Why Does Cybersecurity Matter? So why should medical practices be worried about cyberattacks? Patient Data! Healthcare organizations are prime targets of cyber attackers because of the importance and value of patient data. Even a small practice with several physicians will have accumulated tens of thousands of patient records over several years of operation. These records … [Read more...] about Cybersecurity for Medical Practices
My Practice will Never be Hit by Ransomware
One of the biggest mistakes physicians and practice managers can make is to assume they will not be a target of cyberattacks. Unfortunately, this is absolutely untrue. Recently, a two-physician practice in West Michigan was the victim of a ransomware attack. The practice lost access to all medical records, billing, scheduling, and other critical data after ransomware … [Read more...] about My Practice will Never be Hit by Ransomware
Guide for Choosing Passwords
Why Do I Have to Change my Password Again? Medical practices can be hectic environments, with everyone having seemingly one million things to do. Coming up with a new password can feel like just one more thing no one has time to do. The first thing you think of is your anniversary or your pet’s name; great—you’re done. Wrong! By choosing a weak password, … [Read more...] about Guide for Choosing Passwords