NURS FPX 4045 Assessment 2 Protected Health Information

Name

Capella University

NURS-FPX4045 Nursing Informatics: Managing Health Information and Technology

Prof. Name

Date

Protected Health Information (PHI)

Protected Health Information (PHI) encompasses any patient data or identifiable health information that relates to an individual’s physical or mental health, provision of care, or payment details. Examples of PHI include patient names, residential addresses, birth dates, health assessments, prescribed treatments, medications, and insurance-related information (Pool et al., 2024). The appropriate handling of PHI is crucial in telehealth environments to maintain patient trust and ensure adherence to the Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act (HIPAA).

HIPAA was established to uphold the confidentiality and security of PHI in the United States (Lindsey et al., 2025). It prohibits the unauthorized disclosure of PHI and grants patients the legal right to manage their data, including who can access and share it. HIPAA enforces several rules to guarantee PHI security during telehealth activities. The Security Rule ensures that electronic health information (EHI) is protected from cyber threats and unauthorized access. For instance, using unencrypted platforms can expose PHI to hackers. The Privacy Rule limits data sharing without patient consent and ensures patient control over disclosure (Alder, 2025). An example would be conducting a telehealth session in a public area where sensitive discussions could be overheard. The Confidentiality Rule protects the exchange of PHI, requiring secure transmission channels. Using social media to transmit PHI would violate this rule and pose significant risks.

Importance of Interdisciplinary Collaboration

Maintaining EHI security during telehealth services depends on strong interdisciplinary collaboration. Medical personnel, administrators, IT professionals, and data security staff must work together to establish and sustain robust privacy and security protocols. Each discipline contributes a unique skill set to enhance patient data protection and reduce cyber vulnerabilities (Pool et al., 2023). For example, clinical staff participate in cybersecurity training and follow best practices such as password protection, data encryption, and secure channel use. Administrative personnel set safety policies and allocate resources to support data protection infrastructure. Security teams conduct routine audits to detect and prevent unauthorized data access, while IT experts deploy firewalls and encryption tools to guard digital health communications. Organizations like the Cleveland Clinic implement a holistic strategy involving all departments to strengthen PHI protection (Cleveland Clinic, 2023).

Healthcare professionals should avoid sharing any PHI-related content, including images or discussions about care, on social media platforms. Nurses and other staff members face serious consequences such as job termination, license revocation, legal penalties, and imprisonment for HIPAA violations via social media (Moore & Frye, 2020). Real-life examples of violations include a nurse assistant who was fired in 2016 for sharing an inappropriate video of a patient on Snapchat, and a dental professional fined \$10,000 for disclosing PHI on a public review site. In another case, a nurse was jailed for uploading a patient’s video online (Alder, 2025). Institutions like Green Ridge Behavioral Healthcare have been fined heavily for mishandling PHI.

To avoid such consequences, staff should refrain from sharing medical information, sending friend requests to patients, discussing work-related incidents publicly, or accessing social media during work hours. Reporting any observed data breaches is essential. Secure practices during telehealth include implementing encrypted systems like Secure Sockets Layer (SSL), as utilized by the Mayo Clinic (Mayo Clinic, 2024). Hospitals such as Massachusetts General Hospital conduct frequent audits and review policies to ensure HIPAA compliance (MGH, n.d.). Regular staff training programs, along with formal social media use policies, are vital strategies to prevent misuse. Additionally, establishing fast-response mechanisms for breaches can limit the extent of damage and foster timely corrective action.

Table: Key Areas of PHI Protection in Telehealth

HIPAA Rules and PHI Examples	Interdisciplinary Collaboration in Telehealth	Best Practices and Social Media Guidelines
– PHI includes names, addresses, medications, and insurance info.	– Clinical staff use encrypted systems and safe channels.	– Never post patient details or images online.
– Security Rule ensures EHI is protected from breaches.	– Administrators enforce HIPAA-compliant policies and provide funding.	– Avoid discussing work or patients publicly on social media.
– Privacy Rule restricts PHI sharing without consent.	– IT professionals install firewalls and perform risk assessments.	– Log out of personal accounts at work and report any data misuse immediately.
– Confidentiality Rule safeguards EHI during data transfer.	– Security teams conduct audits and monitor access to sensitive info.	– Participate in regular HIPAA and cybersecurity training.
– Example: Using public Wi-Fi or social media to transmit PHI is risky.	– The Cleveland Clinic uses a holistic approach involving all departments (Cleveland Clinic, 2023).	– The Mayo Clinic and MGH use audits and SSL encryption to prevent PHI exposure (Mayo Clinic, 2024; MGH, n.d.).

References

Alder, S. (2023). HIPAA and social media rules – Updated for 2023. The HIPAA Journal. https://www.hipaajournal.com/hipaa-social-media/

Alder, S. (2023). HIPAA privacy rule – Updated for 2023. The HIPAA Journal. https://www.hipaajournal.com/hipaa-privacy-rule/#:~:text=The%20HIPAA%20Rules%20are%20the,and%20availability%20of%20healthcare%20covered

Cleveland Clinic. (2023). Holistic, multidisciplinary approach protects patient data and privacy. ClevelandClinic.org. https://consultqd.clevelandclinic.org/holistic-multidisciplinary-approach-protects-patient-data-and-privacy/

Lindsey, D., Sniker, R., Travers, C., Budhwani, H., Richardson, M., Quisney, R., & Shukla, V. V. (2023). When HIPAA hurts: Legal barriers to texting may reinforce healthcare disparities and disenfranchise vulnerable patients. Journal of Perinatology, 45(2), 278–281. https://doi.org/10.1038/s41372-024-00805-5

Mayo Clinic. (2024). Privacy policy. MayoClinic.org. https://www.mayoclinic.org/about-this-site/privacy-policy

NURS FPX 4045 Assessment 2 Protected Health Information

MGH. (n.d.). Protect our patients’ privacy. Massachusetts General Hospital. https://www.massgeneral.org/assets/MGH/pdf/research/mgh-privacy-presentation.pdf

Moore, W., & Frye, S. (2020). Review of HIPAA, part 2: Infractions, rights, violations, and role for the imaging technologist. Journal of Nuclear Medicine Technology, 48(1), 7–13. https://doi.org/10.2967/jnmt.119.227827

Pool, J., Akhlaghpour, S., Fatehi, F., & Burton-Jones, A. (2023). A systematic analysis of failures in protecting personal health data: A scoping review. International Journal of Information Management, 74, 102719–102719. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ijinfomgt.2023.102719