Best Practices for Building Secure and Compliant Healthcare Software

When was the last time you visited a hospital and the doctor gave you a handwritten prescription?

Just a few years ago, it was a common practice for hospitals to issue handwritten prescriptions. Today, however, such practices are rare. The healthcare industry has undergone a significant digital transformation, with every aspect of healthcare delivery becoming digital.

From managing patient data in files to electronic health records and appointments to billings, every aspect of healthcare has, in some way or another, been connected to secure healthcare software. Being an industry that is prone to cyber-attacks and threats, implementing strategies for building secure healthcare software has become a need of the hour.

But why is it important to build secure and compliant healthcare software?

Well, the data about your health can reveal a lot of secrets about your life, lifestyles and even your weaknesses. Losing that data into the wrong hands can lead to malpractice, which can even cost you your life. That is why it is important to build secure healthcare software to maintain your practice’s integrity and transparency.

Having said that, building secure healthcare software that meets stringent healthcare regulations is where it gets tricky!

But worry not; in this blog, we will explore the best practices for healthcare software security and addressing cybersecurity threats in healthcare systems.

Understanding Regulatory Requirements

Healthcare software solutions majorly deal with patients’ health information, which is sensitive in nature. That is the reason there are so many healthcare regulatory regulations to protect patient data and easily navigate through the legal landscape of digital healthcare. Some of the important healthcare regulations that you must adhere to include HIPAA, GDPR, HITECH ACT, FDA, etc.

Some of the key regulations that you should focus on while in the healthcare software development process are to abide by regulations like HIPAA and GDPR to ensure storage, transmission, and access controls for patient data. Follow HIPAA-compliant software development guidelines and get approval from regulatory bodies like the FDA, depending on the software’s function and potential risks.

After considering all these things, design a secure architecture design for healthcare software and implement policies and procedures to ensure compliance with the industry standards.

Prioritizing Security Throughout the Development Lifecycle

During building a secure healthcare software, it is important for you to prioritize and take effective security measures. One of the best practices for healthcare software security is to practice secure coding practices. For instance, input validation which helps if you have a quality inflow of data along with data sanitization to completely secure and safeguard the data must be implemented. These practices help in addressing healthcare software security vulnerabilities.

Along with that, during the software development lifecycle, conduct thorough threat modeling which helps you in understanding how data can compromise your security architecture. It helps you in identifying potential security risks and implementing mitigation strategies to secure architecture design for healthcare software.

Last but not least, conduct regular penetration testing which is still one of the best practices for healthcare software security. Since it helps in identifying and addressing healthcare software security vulnerabilities, even before they are exposed and exploited.

Ensuring Compliance with Healthcare Regulations

Security in healthcare software development is crucial to maintaining integrity in digital healthcare practices. To protect patient data in healthcare applications, it is important that your software adheres to the necessary regulations to navigate smoothly through the legal landscape. Some of the necessary compliances that you must adhere to include:

1. HIPAA Compliance: HIPAA compliance in healthcare software development has become necessary to ensure security in healthcare software development. It refers to the Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act to safeguard patient privacy.

2. HITRUST CSF Framework: Apart from the HIPAA-compliant software development guidelines, aligning your healthcare software development process with the HITRUST CSF framework can help you develop an efficient approach to regulatory compliance and risk management.

Apart from these necessary healthcare regulatory compliances, the development phase of the compliant healthcare software should also focus on implementing robust data encryption practices. These best practices for healthcare software security can go a long way in protecting patient data in healthcare applications.

Building a Culture of Security Awareness

Security in healthcare software development is important, but the security of your secure healthcare software and practice does not solely depend on that. In your practice, you also have to build a culture to spread the importance of security and explain why it is so important. Here are some strategies for building a secure healthcare software culture:

1. Employee Security Training: Since your staff will be majorly using compliant healthcare software, providing them regular security awareness training can prove to be essential in healthcare software development. This will not only...Click here to learn more