HIPAA education - Term Paper Example

HIPAA Education Introduction HIPAA law provides provision related to insurance, security, privacy, transactions sets. The various staff members of the organization will need to make them familiar about the law as per the task he or she is performing; however, all health care workers should be aware about this law from the privacy and security angle as they will have access to the patients health and personal records.Every patient has a right to privacy. The HIPAA protects the confidential records of the patients pertaining to medical and billing.

Anyone, whether salaried or non-salaried such as staff, students, volunteers or visitors having access to patients or their health information need to have HIPAA education. Everyone is expected to follow these rules and regulations while performing daily activities. (Understanding Health…)The basic HIPAA awareness is required for every healthcare worker such as Nurses, physicians, students, and other direct healthcare persons. In issues like mental health treatment psychiatrics, psychologists or other mental health professionals will need to address some additional privacy concerns while providing mental healthcare involving psychotherapy notes.

The HIPAA security compliance aspects should be known to those who have access and transmit protected health information of the patient in electronic form such as insurance claims, medical billing, provide patient information online. The persons covered in this are accountants, billing persons. Organization needs to have one HIPAA privacy/security officer who will be in charge of implementing HIPAA compliance step by step along with all the forms, documents, policies and procedures. The HIPAA Security and Privacy Rules enforcement fall under the jurisdiction of Office for Civil Rights (OCR).

The training program will have two modules mainly as per the following.1. Privacy Parameters2. Security ParametersThe duration of each module will be of minimum 2 hours giving an overview of HIPAA act, its significance, compliance and implementation part. The training will also make healthcare workers aware about the necessary forms and documentation needed in fulfillment of this act.Privacy aspects relate with general awareness of HIPAA laws which are required to be known by all healthcare workers.

A privacy aspect will let all health care workers know as to how patients health information will be protected without impeding proper healthcare to them. The training will give overview about the privacy rule that protects the patients health information such as individuals past, present or future health conditions or information related to the past, present or future payments. (Summary of the HIPAA Privacy)The security training will cover HIPAA national standards protecting individuals personal health information in electronics form and safeguards needed to ensure the integrity, confidentiality of health related information.

The training will cover the aspects of administrative safeguards, emergency situations, enforcement, physical safeguards, compliance evaluation, and technical safeguards. In the areas where implementation specification mentions as "required" will be given due importance before other aspects and all healthcare workers will be made fully acquainted with "required" aspects. (Summary of the HIPAA Security)The training will be in homogeneous groups such as all nurses will be in one group and all physicians will form another group to have HIPAA training.

Thus, training will be outlined in such a fashion that it meets the basic need of all healthcare workers for HIPAA awareness and specific need for the targeted group where security aspects are more prominent and needs to be addressed more stringently.References1. Understanding Health Information Privacy (2011), online from http://www.hhs.gov/ocr/privacy/hipaa/understanding/index.html [Accessed on 6/1/2011]2. SUMMARY OF THE HIPAA PRIVACY RULE (2011),online from http://www.hhs.gov/ocr/privacy/hipaa/understanding/summary/privacysummary.

pdf [Accessed on 6/1/2011]3. Summary of the HIPAA Security Rule (2011), online from http://www.hhs.gov/ocr/privacy/hipaa/understanding/srsummary.html [Accessed on 6/1/2011]