Secure transmission of shared electronic health records: A review

Paperbased health records together with electronic Patient Management Systems remain the norm for hospitals and primary care practices to manage patient health information in Australia. Although the benefits of recording patient health information into an electronic format known as an electronic health record (EHR) are well documented, the use of these systems has not yet been fully realised. The next advancement for EHRs is the ability to share health records for the primary purpose of improved patient care. This may for example enable a primary care physician, with the patient’s consent, to electronically share pertinent health information with a specialist, providing timely information transfer and reducing the need for replicated testing. Australia is in the process of adopting a national approach to an integrated health records solution. The Australian National Ehealth Transition Authority (NEHTA) has released their Interoperability Framework together with specifications and standards for secure messaging in Ehealth. This is expected to promote an environment in which vendors competing for market share will develop medical applications that are interoperable. With an aging population and the baby boomers preparing for retirement, it is anticipated that these initiatives may indirectly help to reduce the anticipated strain on the health care budget. Anticipated secondary benefits include the collection of deidentified information for public health research and the development of health management strategies. This paper discusses NEHTA’s secure transmission initiatives and the resultant security issues related to the transfer of shared EHRs

Developing And Validating A Healthcare Information Security Governance Framework

General medical practices\u27 in Australia are vulnerable to information security threats and insecure practices. It is well accepted in the healthcare environment that information security is both a technical and a human endeavour, and that the human behaviours, particularly around integration with healthcare workflow, are key barriers to good information security practice. The Royal Australian College of General Practitioner\u27s (RACGP) Computer and Information Security Standards (CISS) 2013 are the best practice standards for general practices, against which information security is assessed during practice accreditation. With the release of ISO/IEC 27014:2013 Information technology - Security techniques - Governance of information security in May 2013, it is this governance component of information security that is insufficiently addressed within General Practice at present. This paper documents the development and validation of an information security governance framework for use within general medical practice. The aim of the proposed Information Security Governance Framework is to extend current best practice information security management to include information security governance

Impact of bidirectional relationships between streptococcus anginosus group and host tissue matrix components on cellular activity: Role in establishment of infection

This paper investigates pathogenic mechanisms of the Streptococcus anginosus group (SAG) of bacteria which influence the biological activity of periodontal ligament (PDL) cells, endothelial cells and also how matrix proteins produced by these host cells influence bacterial virulence factors. Isolates of SAG species, designated S. anginosus, S. constellatus and S. intermedius, were derived from healthy commensal and clinical pathogenic infection sites. SAG culture supernatants contained multiple protein components which differed between isolates. All SAG supernatants increased cellular proliferation and decreased decorin synthesis and collagen assembly by PDL cells and reduced endothelial cell migration. SAG isolates responded differently to extracellular matrix (ECM) components synthesised by PDL cells, but there was an overall notable increase in hydrolytic enzyme activity and in the production of the cytotoxin intermedilysin by S. intermedius. Collectively, the results indicate that both commensal and pathogenic SAG isolates were capable of impairing the ability of PDL cells and endothelial cells to make functional vascularised tissue. Reduced decorin synthesis is likely to have a major impact on cell signalling, angiogenesis and matrix assembly. Furthermore, ECM components produced by PDL cells were differentially capable of moderately increasing SAG enzymic activity, leading to subtle ECM modifications. The impact this bidirectional effect has on the tissue remodelling process is discussed

Small Business - A Cyber Resilience Vulnerability

Small business in Australia comprise 95% of businesses. As a group this means that they contain increasing volumes of personal and business data. This creates escalating vulnerabilities as information is aggregated by various agencies. These vulnerabilities include identity theft and fraud. The threat environment of small business is extensive with both technical and human vulnerabilities. The problem is that the small business environment is being encouraged to adopt e-commerce by the government yet lacks resources in securing its cyber activity. This paper analysed the threats to this situation and found that questions of responsibility by individual businesses and the government are fundamental to the protection of small businesses information. Ultimately this raises the possibility of an undefined and unrecognised major vulnerability for Australia

Invisible, Underserved, and Diverse: The Health of Women in Prison

In the United States of America, women are the fastest growing segment of the criminal justice system. They are entering the system with far greater physical and mental health problems than men, but with fewer health services. Additionally, within this expanding population of incarcerated women, are disproportionately represented poor women of color with serious health needs. This article: a) uses an ecosocial model to examine and critique the health and healthcare of women in prison, b) examines social structures that influence incarceration and health status, and c) proposes reconsideration of current prison health services and education

Determining Predictor Importance In Multiple Regression Under Varied Correlational And Distributional Conditions

This study examines the performance of eight methods of predictor importance under varied correlational and distributional conditions. The proportion of times a method correctly identified the dominant predictor was recorded. Results indicated that the new methods of importance proposed by Budescu (1993) and Johnson (2000) outperformed commonly used importance methods

International Relations and Cyber Attacks: Official and Unofficial Discourse

The potential for cyberwarfare is vast and is of concern to all nations, and national security defence. It appears that many countries are actively trying to protect their computer networks, whilst looking for ways that might bring down the networks of other countries, although this is not officially acknowledged. Bringing down another nations computer networks could give the attacking national intelligence and control. These kinds of interactions are now a part of the way in which international relations are played out, and the internet is also a place in which international relations are contested. As such the internet plays a role in the visualisation and articulation of international relations both officially and unofficially, via official pronouncements and the activities of private citizens. What makes the internet different to other media forms is that the internet also represents a space in which international relations are contested in terms of cyber attacks and information warfare. This paper analyses official and unofficial discourses surrounding the way in which international relations in regards to cyber attacks have been played out via the internet, using North Korea and Stuxnet as case studies

Challenges in Improving Information Security Practice in Australian General

The status of information security in Australian medical general practice is discussed together with a review of the challenges facing small practices that often lack the technical knowledge and skill to secure patient information by themselves. It is proposed that an information security governance framework is required to assist practices in identifying weaknesses and gaps and then to plan and implement how to overcome their shortcomings through policies, training and changes to processes and management structure