How to Identify Communication Software for HIPAA-Compliant Clinical Workflows
Easy-to-use, highly reliable communication software is crucial for delivering efficient and informed care in hospitals and other healthcare facilities. Alongside improving patient care and services, the right HIPAA-compliant communication software can ensure your team adheres to standards for communicating patients’ private, HIPAA-protected health information.
Here’s how to identify whether your organization has the right communication software.
What General Rules Does HIPAA Require for Electronic Protected Health Information
Any communication platform you use must handle electronic protected health information (ePHI) that is protected by HIPAA standards. HIPAA requirements for communication software stem from four general rules:
- Healthcare organizations must ensure the integrity, availability, and confidentiality of all ePHI they receive, transmit, maintain, or create.
- Healthcare organizations must protect against reasonably anticipated threats to the integrity or security of ePHI.
- Healthcare organizations must protect against reasonably anticipated impermissible disclosure or uses.
- Healthcare organizations must ensure their workforce complies with HIPAA standards.
What Core Requirements Does HIPAA-Compliant Communication Software Have to Follow?
To help organizations comply with these (very) general rules when using communication software, HIPAA has established various standards that govern clinical team communication of ePHI. For example, HIPAA requires communication software to have certain features, such as audit logging, encryption, and access control, found in Code of Federal Regulations (CFR) Title 45 164.312.
Let’s take a closer look at these requirements.
1. Access Control for Electronic Information Systems
45 CFR 164.312 states that healthcare organizations must:
Implement technical policies and procedures for electronic information systems that maintain electronic protected health information to allow access only to those persons or software programs that have been granted access rights as specified in § 164.308.
To meet these requirements, a healthcare organization’s HIPAA communication software needs a comprehensive suite of access controls. Look for tools that offer session duration management and user provisioning to ensure proper access management.
Additionally, security measures should be applied to mobile devices, with Enterprise Mobility Management software safeguarding these devices and applications to perform tasks involving sensitive patient data.
2. Audit Logs for the Recording and Examination of ePHI Storage or Use
The next standard states healthcare organizations must:
Implement hardware, software, and/or procedural mechanisms that record and examine activity in information systems that contain or use electronic protected health information.
To align with these requirements, healthcare organizations must implement communication software that logs and monitors activities within systems handling ePHI. While the HIPAA Security Rule doesn’t specify the exact method for creating audit logs, it mandates the documentation of key activities.
Organizations must track and record essential events such as user access, PHI interactions, and system security actions. As a result, your communication software must support the relevant audit log requirements specified by HIPAA. These audit log requirements include:
User Authentication and Access Events
- Attempts to log in, including both successful and failed tries
- Authorized user system access
- Unauthorized access attempts
- Changes to passwords or requests for resets
PHI Access and Modifications
- Viewing of patient data by users
- Creation of new patient records
- Updates to existing ePHI
- Deletion or archiving of patient information
System-Level Security Events
- Alterations to user roles or permissions
- Changes made to databases containing ePHI
- System firewall activities
- Alerts and actions from anti-malware tools
- Physical access to locations storing ePHI
3. Compliance With Procedures to Prevent Improper Alteration or Destruction of ePHI
As part of 164.312’s technical safeguards, organizations must:
Implement policies and procedures to protect electronic protected health information from improper alteration or destruction
The standard also states that organizations should:
Implement electronic mechanisms to corroborate that electronic protected health information has not been altered or destroyed in an unauthorized manner.
If your team uses the communication software to transmit ePHI, the software must have configurable message and data retention policies. In general, HIPAA requires that HIPAA-related documents be retained for at least six years, and various state laws may require medical records to be kept longer. When selecting a communication platform, ensure it enables you to establish a data retention policy in compliance with HIPAA and your state’s regulations.
4. Authentication Features to Verify the Identity of a Person Seeking ePHI Access
164.312’s person or entity authentication requirements state that healthcare organizations must:
Implement procedures to verify that a person or entity seeking access to electronic protected health information is the one claimed.
Similar to the access control requirements, the HIPAA communication software you choose should include a suite of identity verification tools. Solutions like multi-factor authentication, SAML-based single sign-on, and certificate-based authentication help establish a user’s identity and verify it before allowing them to access ePHI.
A HIPAA-compliant platform should have a suite of identity and access controls to help you meet this requirement.
5. Security Features to Guard ePHI During Transmission
The final requirement described in 164.312’s technical controls focuses on maintaining the secure transmission of ePHI. The rule states:
Implement technical security measures to guard against unauthorized access to electronic protected health information that is being transmitted over an electronic communications network.
To meet this rule, your communication platform should ensure that sensitive patient data is protected through encryption both during transmission and while stored. Data must be encrypted during transit, such as when sent via email or submitted through forms, and when it is at rest within data storage systems. Any communication software used to handle PHI must adhere to certain encryption standards for secure hospital communications, including:
- Transport Layer Security (TLS 1.2 or higher): Ensures secure transmission of PHI over email and messaging systems.
- AES (Advanced Encryption Standard) 256: Due to its high level of security, AES 256 is the preferred encryption method for securing data at rest, as recommended by HIPAA standards.
Mattermost: A Secure Hospital Communications Platform
Mattermost’s unified solution can be easily deployed as part of your HIPAA-compliant software infrastructure, offering enterprise-grade security, authentication features, configurable data retention policies, and audit controls. Alongside these HIPAA-compliant features, our platform provides robust integrations and configurable playbooks for enhanced clinical team communication and project management.
Learn more about our HIPAA-compliant communication platform today.
