Healthcare professionals know that it can be tough to develop efficient processes for secure document exchange, considering that most of the time, files need to get to recipients as quickly as possible. Patient wellbeing is often at stake, so medical staff need to get sensitive information from point A to point B in a timely manner while also keeping HIPAA compliance in mind. Most healthcare organizations transmit patient health information (PHI) to several recipients on any given day, and if the process they use are less than ideal, it can slow down the workflow and take some of the focus away from providing great care. Up until recently, Inova Health System knew this predicament all too well. Read on to find out how Inova discovered a secure file exchange solution that met their tight security standards and helped them continue to provide top-level healthcare to the large area they serve.
A fast, reliable, and highly-secure solution can be hard to come by
Each year, Inova offers specialized healthcare services to over 2 million people in the Washington, DC metro and surrounding areas through its network of hospitals and healthcare facilities. With over 1,700 licensed beds and 16,000 employees, Inova encompasses the full array of precision patient care services including the area’s only Level 1 Trauma Center and Level IV neonatal intensive care unit. As a global leader in personalized health, Inova is home to world-class researchers, expert medical specialists and renowned scientists, who are dedicated to driving innovation to improve patient care, prevent disease and promote wellness.
In order offer cutting-edge healthcare services to the diverse community it serves, Inova has strict policies when it comes to the transmission and storage of patient health information (PHI). Not only must its numerous facilities adhere to HIPAA compliance regulations, but PHI must be rapidly accessible from both within the Inova network as well as to external healthcare providers when patients change locations.
The Radiation Oncology departments within Inova Health System in VA transmit dozens of large patient files on a monthly basis – most of these files contain medical records, x-ray images, as well as other PHI. In this context, the staff worked hard to burn the large files onto CDs and ship them via US mail overnight services to outside patients, doctor’s offices and partner healthcare facilities as-needed. The process, however, was time-consuming, costly and could sometimes result in delays and unsatisfied patients. Emailing PHI was not an option due to its inherent insecurity – many data breaches occur at the sending or receiving end of email transmissions.
Inova’s IT security team tried to improve the workflow process and resolve further time delays with other secure file exchange platforms, but found that they didn’t meet the organization’s stringent security requirements. It was the need to get their data transmitted in a way that was fast, reliable, and highly secure that led Inova to try XMediusSENDSECURE.
SendSecure was adopted quickly and made an immediate impact
The first thing that made all the difference for Inova in choosing SendSecure was the application’s security features. The team needed to ensure that PHI got to recipients safely, and their previous method of mailing the data physically put files at risk of getting lost in the mail along the way. SendSecure uses encryption when files are both in transit and at rest, so Inova staff felt confident that their files were in good hands. SendSecure’s audit trail feature also maintains a record of all transmissions, keeping all file exchanges within adherence to strict HIPAA regulations.
With the onboarding assistance of the XMedius customer support team, SendSecure’s user-friendly interface was adopted quickly by the staff at Inova – making for a fast transition that had an immediate impact. The process for transmitting PHI went from a week on-average to delivery within minutes. Since the Inova team often sends image files of up to 750MB apiece, they love that SendSecure has the capacity to transmit files up to 5TB – they know they’ll never run into a situation where files are too large to send. SendSecure’s two-factor authentication allows file recipients to receive transmissions after entering a simple password, they don’t have to have the software themselves and the process takes virtually no time – no more having to sign for mail or courier packages. The built-in messaging feature allows Inova staff to confirm receipt of PHI by outside healthcare providers and add files as-needed without having to use mail to send additional data risking further delays in patient care.
What it’s like today – Inova’s growing relationship with XMedius SENDSECURE
The transition to SendSecure has not only saved the Inova staff time by greatly improving workflow processes, they have noticed cost savings as well. In many cases, PHI required fast delivery with overnight shipping which can get costly. The Inova team is thrilled with the speed at which they can now transmit patient files and that they no longer need to worry about compliance or the risk of data breach thanks to SendSecure’s robust security features. They plan to implement the easy-to-use SendSecure solution into other departments so that the team as a whole can continue to focus on providing primary and specialty care to individuals more seamlessly.
Inova’s story is a prime example of what many healthcare organizations of all sizes are faced with when it comes to sending and receiving patient files. Are you looking for a way to guarantee the safe transmission of PHI? Speak with an expert today to learn more about how SendSecure can work for you!
The original article can be found here.
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