Unsecure emails and text messaging of medical information violates the Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act (HIPAA) requirements and could have serious legal consequences. An answer to this problem is to use Direct Messaging for information too private and sensitive for unsecure transfer.

Direct Messaging involves the use of a secure, encrypted communication standard (i.e., Direct Protocol) for the exchange of private sensitive clinical and business information. Direct Messaging can be used as a secure alternative for text messages, email, web portals and smartphone communications. Already, it is widely used by health information exchanges such as the Kansas Health Information Network.

Under Stage 2 Meaningful Use, providers are required to use the Direct Protocol for Direct Messaging, but many vendors don’t have this capability. This is where iShare Medical℠ can help. iShare Medical℠ provides secure Direct Messaging capability that significantly reduces risk by providing HIPAA-Compliant exchange of medical records to and from ID-Proofed entities over a nationwide secure network. Our network spans 40,000 health care providers, 50 Health Information Exchanges and supports nearly 300 EHR systems. Find out why your peers have choosen iShare Medical℠. Call us today at (816) 249-2555 ext 1.

Linda Van Horn, MBA | Wednesday, November 11, 2015