Each year during the second week of October, healthcare facilities around the country recognize “Healthcare Security & Safety Week.” This is a chance to send our appreciation to all the professionals out there who work hard to make sure the facilities we rely on for our healthcare needs are safe and secure. This includes everything from the physical safety of patients and staff to virtual security of medical records and personal health information.
Provision is 100% committed to the health and safety of our patients and staff, as well as the security of their private information. Not only have we implemented robust safety policies and training, but we’ve even designated several staff members to serve on our dedicated Safety Committee.
KEEPING PATIENTS AND STAFF SAFE
In 2012, the American Society of Radiation Oncology (ASTRO) first issued “Safety is No Accident,” a comprehensive reference guide for radiation oncology safety initiatives and quality management tools. The resource is endorsed by several of the nation’s leading medical associations and details the importance of incident learning to improve patient safety in the complex and highly technological field of radiation oncology.
Since the opening of Provision’s first proton therapy center in 2014, we have partnered with ASTRO to utilize their Radiation Oncology Incident Learning System (RO-ILS). This system is part of a national Patient Safety organization that collects safety concerns from radiation therapy facilities around the country. RO-ILS allows us to facilitate safer and higher quality care through shared learning with other providers in our field.
At Provision, any team member can submit a suggestion for process improvement. Each suggestion is then reviewed by our Safety Committee, which consists of members from every department, including therapy, medical physics, dosimetry, nursing, care coordinators, patient concierge, and billing, along with our physicians. By studying our own workflow and reviewing the national RO-ILS database, we can streamline processes and continuously improve the safe delivery of care to our patients.
PRIORITIZING VIRTUAL HEALTHCARE SECURITY
In addition to the physical safety of patients and staff, Provision also takes the security of confidential information, such as the healthcare data of our patients, very seriously.
Our cybersecurity program not only utilizes a variety of security software, hardware, and monitoring tools, but also includes employee training and 3rd-party security assessments to ensure we are in compliance with the Health Insurance Portability & Accountability Act (HIPAA). In fact, we place so much emphasis on protecting electronic health information that many of our own internal security policies are more stringent than the rules and guidelines set forth by HIPAA.
Driven by the hard work and commitment of our Compliance and Information Technology departments, this multifaceted security approach provides assurance to our patients, staff, and leadership that protected healthcare information is adequately safeguarded from cyberthreats.
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