Category: industry

It’s considered a technology of yesteryear, but magnetic tape could provide one of the future solutions to our digital data storage needs. Paper records take up masses of space. Digital data can be lost, stolen, corrupted or hacked and requires large servers to store. Advances in magnetic tape over the last few years once again make it a viable alternative to storage needs.

 

 

New Technology from Old

Tape is one of the oldest forms of computer storage technology. It was ubiquitous and largely unchallenged in the 1970s and 1980s, It could store no more than a few bytes at the very most. Until the arrival of floppy disks as a mass storage device, it was largely unchallenged. Today though, with The Cloud and other digital storage forms, it has been largely overlooked.

 

Advantages to Using Modern Tape

Modern standards such as LTO-7 storage an immense amount of data – far more than its predecessors. Even basic level models can store 16TB. Compression rates on some models permit storage of up to 125TB.

High-end tape does not come cheap however, but the initial outlay may eventually pay itself back in saved energy costs and server maintenance.

They have also adapted to modern requirements, working well with integrated cloud or server storage methods.

Tape gives you back the portability you have lacked since the disappearance of the old style floppy disks or its zip drive descendants that had only mixed success in commercial and domestic storage applications.

Portability may provide security issues of their own, but as they are not connected to a network until and unless they are plugged in, they offer an extra level of data protection. Of course, employees will need to be advised on the need to replace hard media in their place of storage. Loss or theft could constitute data breach.

Tape will not degrade in the same way that it used to degrade with repeated use and access is faster than ever before. Some of the best models record 300Mb per second.

 

The Uses of Tape To Medical Storage

Tape would allow flexibility between stakeholders and could be an efficient form of data transfer to complement cloud storage and digital access. However, medical professionals need to be aware that tape and the new disk technology provides complications of their own.

The major issue for medical professionals is that they will not necessarily simple database access to this providers that permit authorized data sharing in this manner. Magnetic tape provide a number of benefits.

We’ve discussed ransomware extensively here at the Record Grabber blog already. This is because it is an important subject to cover right now in relation to data storage and data protection. There are many different types of ransomware but they all have one thing in common beyond encrypting data: they demand payment in something called Bitcoin (BTC).

What is Bitcoin?

Bitcoin is a growing method of online payment but it is not a currency with a country to administer it. It is something called a “cryptocurrency” invented in 2007 and published a year later. It was released as open source software in 2009 to an online community who immediately saw its benefits and flexibility beyond national currencies. Since then, some online shops and retail outlets have allowed consumers to purchase goods and services using the method. It is particularly prevalent in online gambling. Some US politicians use it as a fundraising method.

The value can vary wildly, but typically, a single bitcoin is around the value of $465 (US). Online retailers use it because processing fees for international payments are far lower than conventional methods such as bank transfer, and debit and credit card. The bonus to retailers is that the purchasing agent, and the not seller, will pay the fees. Transactions take place in millibitcoins or microbitcoins (0.001 and 0.000001).

 

Why Scammers Demand Bitcoin Payment

Bitcoin traders can buy and sell bitcoins anonymously. They do not need a bank account or credit card to buy or sell Bitcoins; that is what is most attractive to scammers who demand payment in Bitcoins to release data encrypted by infection of ransomware. Known criminals are using the web to trade in Bitcoin, so it was natural that the darker side of the online world would also use the currency for their own insidious purposes. Nevertheless, the overwhelming majority of Bitcoin transactions are legal and above board.

Bitcoin is not the only cryptocurrency, but it is the most commonly used by scammers purely because it is the most popular and the one likely to stick around in the long-term. It was reported that over $200m in ransoms have been paid in 2016 as a result of ransomware infection. Bitcoin itself is no less responsible for the spread of ransomware than the email network that carries the files from sender to systems ready for infection. It is purely a tool, and likely to be a useful one for more of us in the future.

In the cutthroat world of mergers and acquisitions, many aspects of an organization’s practice will change. As the wheels of employee, equipment and process merger completes, it could be the right time for senior decision makers to opt to move to outsourcing their record storage and retrieval. It is also a time to evaluate your obligations.

Merging Two Sets of Records Can Cost

Not just money, but time too. As the merger goes through, you want as smooth and as seamless a transition as possible, especially if a large group of people are relocating. You will need to make space for your records (on your server if digital, physical space if hard copies) and ensure that the systems are compatible. Compatibility can be an issue where businesses use custom software that were never designed to work together.

 

Working Out Obligations for the New Collection

Records retrieval, storage and management can be complex. That’s why organizations like Record Grabber exist in the first place, they take the hard work away from establishments. Your obligations of the new material may differ depending on the types of document. If they are record types you’ve never handled before, you and your employees are going to need to learn the new legal standards.

 

Stakeholders May Have Different Access Processes

No two organizations are the same. Interested parties (lawyers, healthcare professionals, administrators, insurance companies) may have had a set procedure to access records. How the two merging companies handled such requests may have vastly differed. You will need to come up with a new system that keeps access efficient and halts potential confusion. Not everybody is going to be happy about the new way of doing things.

 

The Logistics

Even with the smoothest transition in the world, there will be snags. Do you use electronic or manual access? Barcode scanners? What are your security and data protection protocols? Merging the files may be the easiest part of the merger; merging the two systems of access may be the most difficult.

 

Maybe Now is the Time To Outsource?

When you outsource your records, much of this hard work will be taken off your hands. Record Grabber has a standardized system that we have used for many years. Organizations outsource to us because they know our dedicated and efficient system has survived many client mergers. All the way through, we have continued to offer the same high quality service.

Record Grabber is an expert provider in record storage, protection and retrieval services. We have been doing this long enough to understand the kind of problems you will experience when you choose not to outsource these services to a third party business and opt to handle all storage and retrieval in-house.

 

Paperwork Out of Control

Due to laws on what can be stored and for how long, it’s necessary to keep a complete paper trail for patients and their treatments for many years. This means several things: firstly, you will need to make space in your building to store all of your records, and more and more of it the more patients you take on. You may also need to take on a dedicated employee to manage the records store.

 

Ever Increasing Budget

If you don’t have space for storage you will need to make space, including reducing office space or building an extension or mezzanine to hold it. Then you have to hire an employee with archiving experience or qualifications, or training somebody to take over the role. Paperwork is the largest cost to an organization and many only realize when it is too late.

 

Data Loss

Offices that are not properly equipped to handle large amounts of data lose between 2% and 7% of records every year. At any one time, between 3% and 5% of a company’s records are somewhere other than where they ought to be. Should these records never be found, it can cost in the region of $180 for a spare copy.

 

Time Wasted Searching

Storing and handling all of your data in-house comes with the problem of lost or misplaced data, usually due to human error. No training in the world can eliminate even the simplest mistakes. Do you really want to spend so much time looking for misplaced files? You would probably rather be doing your actual job. The average manager spends a total of four weeks per year looking for misplaced paperwork; the average employee spends two hours per day.

 

Redundant Use of Space

You have a legal obligation to keep records for a certain length of time; how long varies by state. But did you know that once filed, 90% of records are never retrieved or examined again? This means that you will be turning over a lot of space (in your warehouse or on your server) to storing records that will remain inactive and unused until they are inevitably destroyed several years later.

As you are a medical professional, we will assume you would rather spend more time working with patients than ensuring your compliance with data protection. Although there are many basic things you can do to ensure compliance, since the Federal Government decided to take a proactive role in ensuring that organizations comply, it’s not as simple as it once was. You may fall into some of the traps below without due care.

Not Keeping Ahead of the Curve

Standards and requirements are under constant review thanks to changing technology and a desire to keep up with compliance standards. If you do not subject your procedures to constant review in line with legislation, and do not keep your employees up to date with their obligations, you could be falling foul of HIPAA compliance.

 

Who Can Access The Data?

Standards slip when we do what is convenient, ignoring what is not legal. To cut corners and speed up the process, do you allow clinical staff access to patient records? If so, you could be breaking the law. Only those who need to know information about a patient should be permitted to interact with it. This excludes most clinical staff who are, in some cases, allowed access to confidential data by busy employees.

 

The Water Cooler

Similarly, there have been cases of employees discussing confidential information around ears who have no need or right to hear it. This can come in the form of office gossip or using an inappropriate space (such as an open plan office) to discuss sensitive information. This is a violation of that patient’s confidentiality and right to privacy on personal data. Such information should be strictly “need to know” and discussions should take place in appropriate places.

 

Failing To Appoint a Compliance Officer

Many do not understand that medical practices are considered “non-compliant” should they fail to appoint a person to oversee security and privacy. These two titles can come under the remit of a single person. This person’s role is to ensure compliance, development and maintenance of the systems. Typically, the person appointed to this role is a Business Manager or equivalent.

 

Poor Encryption

It is inconceivable to us that an organization that works with sensitive data may use inadequate or no encryption, but there have been recorded cases. This is a serious violation of HIPAA and goes against every recommendation on data protection and patient confidentiality. Good encryption ensures maximum protection against potential hacks.

How long Record Grabber, or any organization concerned with sharing, storing and protecting patient medical records may keep such files, is not as simple as one might think. There are legal requirements of a minimum amount of time, but there is no maximum amount of time for storage, and there are benefits and drawbacks for keeping them longer.

HIPAA does not specify how long organizations should keep records beyond the minimum, it does state that new and old records are treated with the same safeguarding provisions.

What is the Legal Requirement?

Record Grabber is legally bound to keep records under the following conditions pertaining to diagnosis, treatment and after-care:

• Seven years from the date of the record of last treatment if the patient is still alive
• Three years after the death of the patient
• For minors, when the patient reaches the age of 21, or after seven years, depending on which occurs first
• Hospitals are obliged to keep records for 25 years following treatment but as we are a Record Service, we are not bound by this

Seven years is a good rule of thumb and many providers will destroy records when that legally required time is up. There are some exceptions though. ECGs and EEGs may be discarded prior to the seven years stated above if there is no change between the most recent and the previous record. PKUs and lab reports must be kept for no less than five years; x-rays and other images may be discarded after just three years.

 

Advantages to Keeping Records Longer Than Minimum

Keeping records for more than the obligatory seven years can help maintain record integrity and the “full picture” of a person’s diagnosis, treatment, insurance or legal proceedings. Sometimes, conditions and treatments are related and having all information available can help a legal case or course of treatment run smoother.

 

Disadvantages to Keeping Records Longer Than Minimum

The first issue is one of security. The longer a record is kept – digital or paper – the longer there is a security risk to those records. The second issue is one of space. Paper records take up a lot of space and will require larger warehouses over time. For digital records, back-ups can take longer and will take up much more space on the network drive; this is also for records that are highly unlikely to be required after so long.