< img src="https://www.techrepublic.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/02/tr2323-healthcare-data-migration.jpeg"alt=""> A healthcare company’s data is complicated, high-volume and in requirement of strong security protocols to adhere to HIPAA. Managing healthcare information can be an exceptionally difficult process without the ideal finest practices. In this guide, we’ll inform you how to efficiently move health care information.
Image: Blue World Studio/Adobe Stock Data is the world’s most important resource, and health care produces a few of the most valuable data. The medical sector generates and shops huge amounts of extremely sensitive details, implying it must take its information operations seriously. Healthcare data migration is one of the trickiest of these data operations to perform safely and effectively.
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As patterns like telehealth and digitization continue to grow in the healthcare industry, so too will these already huge data volumes. That growth will imply many health care companies will have to migrate their data eventually, which is a process that needs careful preparation.
Dive to:
What is healthcare data migration?
Healthcare information migration is the procedure of moving medical information from one place to another. With 96% of U.S. hospitals utilizing electronic health records, that frequently implies moving patient records to a brand-new EHR platform. Alternatively, some medical organizations may migrate data from one health center to a new physical location.
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Health care information migration can refer to non-patient data also. For example, you may wish to move financial info or other organizational records to a brand-new system, whether that’s moving to the cloud or transferring information centers.
Another factor for moving health care information is to create more space for new data in a higher-capacity storage medium. You may likewise choose to move to a brand-new storage platform in order to improve your cybersecurity or regulative compliance.
Best practices for migrating health care data
Whatever the specifics, healthcare information migration includes copying and/or moving possibly delicate info, which presents considerable danger. Here are some best practices to follow to minimize these risks and guarantee information migration runs smoothly.
Review any relevant requirements
Must-read big information coverage
The very first and one of the most crucial actions in healthcare information migration is ensuring that your data is compliant with relevant policies. Your company and its information may fall under multiple regulations like HIPAA, the California Customer Privacy Act or the General Data Defense Guideline, all of which determine how you can save certain kinds of information.
It is very important to evaluate these requirements to see if you have any data with particular legal requirements. For instance, while HIPAA-covered data is exempt from CCPA, some details in HIPAA-compliant companies isn’t. If you don’t acknowledge this data and apply the needed safeguards in your new system, it might produce legal trouble.
Evaluate and organize your data prior to moving
Numerous parts of the migration procedure– consisting of meeting regulative standards– are a lot easier when you have enough visibility into your data. Prior to moving anything, it is essential to audit your data to determine what you have, where you save it, how you use it and any specific security needs. This information will assist your decisions about what to move and how to move it.
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You likely don’t require to migrate all your data, so you ought to initially examine it to see what’s most mission-critical. Since 75% of Americans over 65 have numerous health conditions, you might have more senior patients than any other market. Consequently, it makes one of the most sense to focus on moving senior client records to a more safe or scalable platform.
Alternatively, you might have numerous unnecessary copies of some information, so you ought to erase extraneous files prior to migrating to ensure a smoother transition. Examining and organizing your information will help expose these needs for a more strategic migration.
Pick your migration tools and storage systems thoroughly
It’s also important to select your next data storage medium thoroughly. Search for a service that is scalable and reputable enough to deal with larger data volumes while sticking to your organization’s security requirements. Likewise, evaluate any data migration tools you use to make certain they’re safe and secure and work well with the kinds of information you’re moving.
If you’re dealing with 3rd parties like cloud suppliers or software service providers, examine their history and accreditations to see if they have a strong security track record. Occurrences like the Red Cross data breach emphasize how third parties’ weaknesses can impact your data. To avoid this sort of concern, confirm that these celebrations are trustworthy and follow information governance and security best practices prior to you give them access to delicate information systems.
Create backups
One basic however easy-to-miss action in health care information migration is backing up your essential information. Errors can occur during migration, even with thorough preparation and reputable tools, and your information is too conscious assume these errors will not happen to you. Creating secure backups of all important information before moving will make sure migration concerns do not cause data loss.
SEE: Best backup software (TechRepublic)
HIPAA describes stringent backup requirements for safeguarded health details, which act as outstanding guidelines even for non-HIPAA-covered information. Try to find a backup service with file encryption, strong authentication controls and keeping track of functions. Cybercriminals can get just as much from your backups as information in your primary storage medium, so it is very important to keep these safe.
Kind and follow a comprehensive migration strategy
Lastly, make certain to develop an official, detailed information migration strategy for when and how you’ll move your information. This plan must include the following information:
- What information you’ll relocate to a new place.
- What tools you’ll use to move it.
- What time and date you’ll move each dataset.
- How you’ll backup your information.
- Who is responsible for each action of the procedure.
- What to do if something goes wrong.
The more specific your plan is, the much easier it will be to move your data. Make sure you can quickly share this information, too, as mistakes are less likely if everybody comprehends their functions and knows where to turn for questions.
Migrating your data with confidence
Healthcare data migration may be daunting, but with comprehensive preparation, it can be a smooth, secure process. Maximizing this move begins with understanding what you require from your migration tools and systems and what can go wrong.
SEE: Data governance checklist for your organization (TechRepublic Premium)
With a detailed data migration strategy, you can ensure your data operations are scalable, safe and compliant with relevant legislation. From there, your team can make healthcare information actionable for both patient and organizational results.
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