News Feature | November 13, 2013

Does Usability Compromise Portal Security?

Source: Health IT Outcomes
Katie Wike

By Katie Wike, contributing writer

There is a fine balance between proper security and a user friendly system when it comes to engaging patients through online portals

Speaker Adam Greene, JD, MPH, a partner at Davis Wright Tremaine LLP, warned of the dangers of choosing usability over security at the American Health Information Management Association's (AHIMA) 85th Annual Convention and Exhibit. Greene stressed the importance of finding a balance between security and usability so patients can easily access their information without putting themselves at risk for breaches.

“You want each patient to have a strong password but not so strong that they can’t remember it and access their records,” said Greene, a former Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) regulator, according to an AHIMA press release. Greene highlighted a number of questions HIM professionals are grappling with, including how are password resets handled, and urged HIM professionals to make sure their organizations' EHR portal vendor's software has been independently tested.

The release went on to note when an organization installs a patient portal one facility's experience was that medical record requests increased as patients received greater access to their health information. Areas that pose the greatest privacy challenges include family medicine, women's health, psychiatry and transplant.

HealthIT Security quotes AHIMA CEO Lynne Thomas Gordon, RHIA, MBA, CAE, FACHE, FAHIMA, as saying, “Patient portals are a powerful way for patients to quickly access their health information online. For portals to realize their potential, it is incumbent on HIM professionals to proactively make sure that patients benefit from the same privacy and security standards they are accustomed to. To facilitate this, HIM professionals should be involved in all aspects of their organizations' portal strategy as they are the experts who will deal with it daily."

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