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| Survey Says Data Protection Top Health Care
Concern |
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(November 19, 2001)
Protecting health data has become the top issue for health care information
technology executives, according to a survey from Computer Sciences Corp., El
Segundo, Calif. The survey reflects the awareness in the industry of fast
approaching deadlines under the Health Insurance Portability and Accountability
Act, says Christine Malcolm, vice president of the global health solutions
consulting practice for Computer Sciences. “Now that the penalties are
close to hitting, it’s real,” she says. HIPAA’s final
transactions and code sets rule carries a compliance date of Oct. 16, 2002,
followed by the final privacy rule’s April 14, 2003, compliance
date.
More than 1,000 I.T. executives worldwide in several industries
completed the survey in August. Included were 126 American and two Canadian
health care organizations, primarily representing providers or payers. Figures
in this report represent only these North American respondents.
Asked to
rank the top 15 information systems management issues, respondents from North
American health care organizations ranked protecting and securing information
systems the No. 1 priority. Other top issues, in order, included organizing and
utilizing data, optimizing enterprisewide information technology services,
aligning information services and corporate goals, and optimizing
organizational effectiveness. Developing an e-business strategy--the top issue
for North American health care organizations in the 2000 Critical Issues
Survey--fell to 15th this year. The importance of an e-business strategy
dropped because of the collapse of the dot-com sector, Malcolm says.
“Respondents no longer believed if they didn’t become e-business
immediately they would be severely affected,” she adds.
When asked
to pick the top three information technology issues, respondents ranked
protecting data as No. 1, followed by aligning information systems and
corporate goals, and organizing and utilizing data. The priority of aligning
technology and corporate goals shows information systems are getting more
respect in health care organizations, Malcolm says. “Leaders are realizing
they need information systems as a major part of the team,” she adds.
Survey results also show a new push for customer service in health care
organizations. Respondents developing a new information technology project rank
improved customer service as the top business goal for the project. Cost
reduction initiatives in recent years are clashing with expectations from
empowered consumers, Malcolm says. “There is a broad appreciation now that
the cost-cutting that has been the priority of health care organizations is not
adequate to make an organization thrive,” she adds.
Computer
Sciences will post full survey results today on its Web site, at
www.csc.com. |
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