Nearly every single piece of software needs to abide by security codes and also promote and provide security for the users. This is as much for the software itself, so it can withstand cyberattacks and the dangers of the internet, as well as for the safety of those who use the websites. However, the world of healthcare is subject to some pretty intense security items whenever you start building software for it.
Healthcare has become increasingly vulnerable, especially when it comes to securing patient data, privacy, and security, especially with all the digital risks around it. If you are building software for any type of health organization, here are some of the security and HIPPA (health insurance portability and accountability act) considerations that you need to consider.
Focus Heavily On Privacy and Security
One of the best things that you can do, right from the start, when you create software for the healthcare industry is to focus heavily on privacy and security. Your software, no matter how it is used, is going to handle some degree of data. Even if your software doesn’t touch patient records or even interact with patients at all, it is still going to be on the network, and you don’t want your software to be the weakest link.
Because bad guys will get inside and will attempt to use the doors opened by your weak security to get into the more secured data, so make sure that your software is as secure and as private as it can be.
Make sure that the use of the software, the transfer of data, and the encryption is all top-notch from the get-go, and you will be fine.
Make Sure The Data Can Be Backed Up And Disposed Of Properly
Of course, things do happen to computers all the time that can cause panic and can lead to problems. For your software, you need to make sure that it is prepared for an event like this by making sure it can recover data in the event of an emergency. Having software that can perform regular backups is also a good idea to prevent data loss.
However, you don’t want archived and expired backup data just sitting there on a database server or tucked away in an office computer. Not only will this clutter things up, but it can also be a security risk. So make sure that any data that is no longer useful can be removed in a safe and non-retrievable manner.
Example: Creating Substance Abuse Software
If you are concerned about taking on a software creation job for a healthcare company because of all these strict rules and requirements, don’t be. There are tons of examples of countless pieces of software that have been used by the healthcare field, and you can learn from them. Software by Foothold Tech has been used in the field of substance abuse in order to help doctors treat addictions and to help patients keep on track with their recovery and sobriety.
It’s also very easy to use and flexible enough to be used for a wide variety of addictions and substance abuse scenarios, and it can be a great jumping-off point for you to design your own software as well.
Don’t get intimidated by the long list of rules and requirements that the healthcare field has, and instead, focus on making sure that your software is the best that it can be in terms of security, usefulness, and cost. Then the companies will come to you!
