Security Issues in E-Healthcare

Electronic healthcare, or e-healthcare, for paperless management of all activities within large healthcare establishments, promises much in speeding up the typical bureaucracy of healthcare in medical centers and hospitals. However, the realities that face the proper implementation of e-healthcare involve many security issues. For widespread adoption of e-healthcare by hospitals, it is essential to perform a detailed evaluation of security issues, to set the stage for standardization of various components for the proper implementation of e-healthcare. A typical e-healthcare system can consist of many components and subsystems, such as appointments and scheduling; admission, discharge, and transfer; prescription order entry; dietary planning; routine clinical notes; lab and radiology orders; picture archiving, and smart card sign-on. Each of these subsystems is vulnerable to security threats. This study examines the security issues for the implementation of e-healthcare using currently available healthcare standards, and proposes solutions and recommendations to secure the future of e-healthcare.