Patient data at risk from poor processes

Huge increase in volume is 'generating problems that senior healthcare IT executives are not currently considering.'

Too many hospitals depend on outdated and inefficient practices to backup and archive their troves of patient data, according to a study published this week by HIMSS Analytics.

The survey, conducted in conjunction with Iron Mountain, polled 150 senior IT professionals nationwide to assess how they protect data from potential loss, and archive it to meet long-term compliance requirements.

The big takeaway? Inconsistent processes are putting data at risk and unnecessarily straining IT storage budgets.

Most respondents said they classify an average of 75 percent of their clinical data as "active" – meaning they store it onsite for immediate access, a surprising practice given that less than 30 percent of this data is accessed after 18 months, and could be moved to more cost-effective storage mediums, according to the report.

Data vital to the business and near-term clinical operations should be backed up to remote data centers, allowing for fast access and protecting the data from extreme weather events or other disasters that could wipe out onsite servers. Less active data being kept for compliance reasons or future research needs doesn't require the same level of access and can be stored on offline media.


Source: From Health Care IT News, www.healthcareitnews.com