The digital age of patient privacy concerns and the rapid evolution of artificial intelligence seems to have met at a crossroads. Medical data analyzed by AI features can help improve patient care from answering patient questions to assisting in diagnostics. However, how is sensitive data being safeguarded in this new age of artificial intelligence?
Let’s take a closer look at this intersection between AI and patient privacy concerns and what it means for you and your next doctor’s appointment.
Potential Risks of AI in Healthcare
As more and more software in the healthcare industry includes AI-based components, there are questions regarding the protection of patient identity and sensitive information especially in terms of compliance with the HIPAA legislation.
Some of the potential privacy risks of using AI in healthcare include questions about data storage, data breaches, and data linkages. Where is the vast amount of data used in AI features coming from? Is it being stored in a place where it could be accessed or compromised? Is the data uploaded to the cloud where it could be accessed by a malicious source?
In terms of data linkages, can the data that is used to analyze patient symptoms or images be linked back to the patient through personally identifiable information (PII)?
HIPAA & the Use of AI
It’s important to note that there are three main components of the HIPAA legislation that should protect patient privacy regardless of whether AI is being used.
These HIPAA components include:
- The confidentiality, integrity, and security of ePHI must be protected via administrative, physical, and technical safeguards.
- Safeguarded mechanisms must be in place to protect the privacy of protected health information and must only be accessed by authorized parties.
- Notification must be provided in the case of a breach of any unsecured ePHI.
There is no current language in HIPAA legislation that is specific to artificial intelligence, but it is expected that these guidelines will be met in any circumstance.
Protection of Patient Data
Since AI requires a massive amount of data to help diagnose, treat, and personalize medical care, there should be detective and preventive controls to secure PHI – Protected Health Information.
Preventive controls such as firewalls, physical barriers, anonymization (de-identifying patient data), strict use of access controls and segregation of duties should be instituted as best security practices. Detective controls, used to detect an event once it has occurred, should also be instituted. This should include the use of internal and external audit reviews, log monitoring, vulnerability management, incident alerting, and file integrity monitoring.
HIPAA Compliant AI Solutions
To choose software and features for your healthcare organization that will not only streamline your office, help with diagnoses and take advantage of all that AI has to offer, be sure to do your due diligence when researching appropriate technology.
The HIPAA Journal recently released the “Best HIPAA Compliant Software” for 2024 to keep your healthcare organization on the cutting edge while also maintaining patient privacy. They also suggest practical ways to assess vendors and software to be sure you are choosing the best privacy solutions possible.
To find out more about privacy solutions for your healthcare organization talk to our team at Spectra Networks. Contact us online, call us at (978) 219-9752, or visit us at Mill 58 on Pulaski Street in Peabody.