Privacy in healthcare is a major issue, especially since most computer networks are vulnerable to attack or intrusion. The U.S. Government’s Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act (HIPAA) guarantees a patient's privacy; biometrics is allowing patients and healthcare professionals to feel secure about information confidentiality and information accessibility.

As of April 2009, it is required that physicians and healthcare professionals track instances when a patient's electronic health record (EHR) is accessed in the United States. Biometrics allows the healthcare staff to do this easily. By making records accessible only to someone who is positively identified via hand/thumb/iris print, you can track who accessed the files, and when the files were accessed. More importantly, Biometrics ensures that the person who accessed the files is actually who they say they are, and does have rights to view the records.

For many healthcare organizations, the ability to collaboratively share patient data/records has been a challenge. A solution is needed that allows appropriate healthcare personnel to access confidential records, no matter where they are located. Organizations are also looking for ways to streamline processes and reduce expenses. Cost-efficiency can be enhanced with the help of biometric authentication technology.

Deployment of a biometric system can also protect against fraudulent insurance claims that may be initiated from an inside source. Requiring a biometric stamp on audited data ensures that the process will be secure, and provides an accurate trail to those involved in the procedure.

While IT departments have been tasked with improving patient privacy protection, they must also remain conscious of limited resources. For a new identity verification system to be launched successfully, it must be deployed easily into the existing legacy network, and should be inexpensive to maintain. Our HealthDynamix professionals are able to provide biometric solutions that fit these requirements.