Protecting patient confidentiality in hospitals

Information security and privacy in hospitals: a literature mapping and review of research gaps

Information security and privacy are matters of concern in every industry. The healthcare sector has lagged in terms of implementing cybersecurity measures. Therefore, hospitals are more exposed to cyber events due to the criticality of patient data. Currently, little is known about state-of-the-art research on information security and privacy in hospitals. The purpose of this study is to report the outcome of a systematic literature review on research about the application of information security and privacy in hospitals. A systematic literature review following the PRISMA methodology was conducted. To reference our sample according to cybersecurity domains, we benchmarked each article against two cybersecurity frameworks: ISO 27001 Annex A and the NIST framework core. Limited articles in our papers referred to the policies and compliance sections of ISO 27001. In addition, most of our sample is classified by the NIST function "Protect," meaning activities related to identity management, access control and data security. Furthermore, we have identified key domains where research in security and privacy are critical, such as big data, IOT, cloud computing, standards and regulations. The results indicate that although cybersecurity is a growing concern in hospitals, research is still weak in some areas. Considering the recrudescence of cyber-attacks in the healthcare sector, we call for more research in hospitals in managerial and non-technical domains of information security and privacy that are uncovered by our analysis.

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INTRODUCTION

Intimacy is one of the most common and less cared for aspects in health care. From real situations from diagnostic explorations to hospitalisation, the patient possibly sees him/herself subjected to constant aggression of the integrity of his values. When this is noted and taken into account by professionals and especially by the nurses, using various strategies implicit in the care given them, it proves to be one of the elements of major satisfaction and confidence shown in our clients.

OBJECTIVES

To identify the characteristics associated with the concept of intimacy from a global perspective; that is, from a patient point of view, and from that of the nursing professionals themselves.

MATERIAL AND METHOD

This was a qualitative study using a consensusof focal groups opinion, directed towards patients (and/or principal carers) admitted to the Nursing Service Unit of the Neurology Service of our hospital and a group of professionals in the same service.

RESULTS

We have been able to verify that the opinion of professionals and patients coincide in some aspects leaving other exposed to expand our perspective with respect to the welfare offering that we do in order to improving it.

CONCLUSIONS

This methodology for improved care puts a global focus on the approach to intimacy and attempts to show the connection between the care provided, the perceived quality of this, and the expectations of our clients.