How to Develop a Secure Healthcare Website to Protect Patient Data

The healthcare industry thrives on trust as patients entrust healthcare professionals with their most sensitive information. One of the most critical components of this trust is data security. A data breach on a healthcare website can expose private medical records, compromise patient identities, and disrupt essential healthcare services. Verizon's 2019 Data Breach Investigations Report* suggests that 59% of all healthcare data breaches originate from within, highlighting the vulnerability of internal systems. 

Fortunately, creating a secure digital presence is possible. Mirra's full-stack technology services address the unique challenges of healthcare cybersecurity and offer industry-leading healthcare website development solutions to effectively protect patient data.

HIPAA Compliance for Secure Healthcare Website Development

The Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act (HIPAA) is the national standard for protecting patients' electronic health information (ePHI). Any healthcare website that works with ePHI must comply with HIPAA regulations.

Here's a breakdown of what HIPAA compliance is all about:

•  HIPAA mandates healthcare businesses to ensure confidentiality (protected from unauthorized access), integrity (accuracy and completeness), and availability (accessible when needed) of all ePHI.
• Healthcare businesses must identify and reduce the possibilities of security issues in ePHI, which include unauthorized access, disclosure, or misuse.

Non-compliance with HIPAA can lead to hefty fines and even criminal charges.

8 Essential Steps to Ensure Secure Healthcare Website Development

1. Choose the Right Hosting Provider

Your website's security depends largely on your hosting provider. Find a provider specializing in healthcare web solutions and offering features which are as follows:

• Encrypted data storage
• Regular backups
• Dedicated support
• Server-level security
• HIPAA-compliant infrastructure
• Redundant web application firewalls (WAFs)
• Intrusion detection systems (IDS)
• Protection from common web attacks like distributed denial of service (DDoS) and SQL injection

2. Implement Secure Design and Development Practices

Consult developers with knowledge of secure coding practices. The best decision is to consult a third-party administrator (TPA) like Mirra that offers high-end full-stack development services by implementing the following practices:

• We utilize the expertise of top developers to avoid common coding errors that can create vulnerabilities in healthcare website development.
• Our work depends on frameworks specifically designed with security in mind to help reduce the risks of data breach. 
• Our experts conduct regular security audits to test and identify potential security issues and address them as a priority. 

Read More: How UI/UX Design Can Improve Patient Engagement in Healthcare Apps

3. Priortize Access Control and User Authentication

Implement role-based access control (RBAC) and multi-factor authentication (MFA) in the healthcare website development process to ensure only authorized personnel can access sensitive information. RBAC assigns different access levels to users depending on their roles within the organization.

In addition, multi-factor authentication (MFA) requires users to add a second factor, such as a code from a mobile app during sign in. This process adds an extra layer of security in healthcare software development.

4. Implement Data Encryption Throughout the Process

Data should be encrypted both in transit (traveling over the internet) and at rest (stored on servers). Encryption scrambles data and makes it unreadable for unauthorized users. Here are the two main types of encryptions to consider in healthcare website development:

• Transport Layer Security (TLS): TLS encrypts data in transit between your website and users' web browsers. It ensures that even if someone intercepts the data, they cannot read it.
• AES (Advanced Encryption Standard): AES is a strong encryption algorithm used to encrypt data at rest on your servers.

5. Conduct Regular Security Audits and Testing

Just like physical health checkups, your website requires regular security assessments. Vulnerability scans, penetration testing, and code reviews can help identify and address healthcare website security flaws before they pave the way for security breaches

While vulnerability scans automatically identify weaknesses in your website's security posture, penetration testing stimulates a cyberattack to identify and exploit vulnerabilities that attackers might use. Similarly, regular code reviews by security experts can help identify potential security issues in your website's code.

6. Keep Data Backups

Regular data backups and a practical disaster recovery plan should be in place to ensure you can quickly recover from a breach or other disaster. The faster you can bounce back, the lesser the damage is.

7. Train Your Staff

Human errors are one of the weakest links in any security chain. Regularly train your staff on security best practices for healthcare website development. Educate them on phishing scams, strong password hygiene, and other tactics cybercriminals use.

8. Keep Updating & Do Patch Test

Outdated software is a hacker's playground. Ensure all software, including your operating system, web server, and applications, is up to date with the latest security patches.

Use a patch management system that can help automate the process of installing security patches for your software.

9. Secure Third-Party Services

If your website utilizes third-party services, ensure they are HIPAA-compliant and follow the same security standards as your internal infrastructure.

When working with third-party vendors that will have access to ePHI, make sure to create a BAA, a legal agreement that outlines the vendor's obligations to protect patient data during the healthcare website development process.

Building Trust Through Transparency in Healthcare Website Development

Along with strong security measures, you need to build patient trust with transparency. Communicate your commitment to data security clearly and concisely. The following are some effective ways to do this:

• Publish a privacy policy that should clearly explain how you collect, use, and disclose patient data
• Inform patients about security breaches
• Offer resources to help patients learn how to protect their health information

Mirra as Your Trusted Partner for Secure Healthcare Website Development Mirra's full-stack technology services are a part of our revolutionary Medicare Advantage in a Box solution. Our team of seasoned professionals possesses the expertise and experience to help you stay compliant with HIPAA by implementing robust security measures. Our developers follow secure coding practices and industry-leading frameworks to provide HIPAA-compliant website solutions. Besides, our healthcare website development process goes through continuous monitoring to detect and respond to potential security threats on time.

Mirra understands the unique challenges healthcare organizations face in securing their websites. We are committed to helping you build a secure digital environment that protects your patients' data and builds trust. 

Contact Mirra today to learn more about our full-stack technology solutions and how we can help you in secure healthcare website development. 

* 2024 Data Breach Investigations report. (n.d.). Verizon Business.