Health Data Security a Staple of Holy Name’s Vaccine Record System

Holy Name Medical Center in New Jersey announced a partnership with global security firm SICPA to protect health data security while providing a vaccination record platform for individuals who receive the vaccine at its West New York and Teaneck vaccination centers. Holy Name is the first US healthcare center to offer the CERTUS myHealth Pass platform to its patients.

The platform is forgery-proof and aims to ensure data security while also providing patients with an easy way to access their COVID-19 vaccination records. Holy Name was also one of the first healthcare centers to use Apple wallet and pdf forms of vaccination records.

"As one of the only medical systems in the country actively developing our own healthcare software and innovations, we are thrilled to announce this new secure digital platform for our patients,” Michael Maron, president and CEO of Holy Name Medical Center, stated publicly.

“CERTUS® myHealth Pass provides individuals with the convenience of having their medical information, such as vaccine cards or prescriptions, easily accessible in a secure digital or paper format that cannot be tampered with, duplicated, lost, damaged, or destroyed. Holy Name is in a perpetual search for innovative allies like SICPA and we are proud to have created this, first-of-its-kind partnership with them."

The myHealth Pass enables providers to secure health certificates for each patient. A digital stamp created by a QR code will allow patients to easily show proof of vaccination to border agencies, stadiums, and any other entity that might require it. In addition, the technology can be used to secure prescription information, diagnostics testing results, and other health documents.

According to its website, the CERTUS myHealth Pass never stores sensitive information in a database. The documents are secured by blockchain technology to ensure data protection.

Holy Name Medical Center has embraced digital platforms that provide secure access to vaccination information. But not all digital health platforms ensure health data security. While having digital access to your own protected health information (PHI) is extremely convenient, it can come with security risks.

A recent study found that 88 percent of mHealth apps contained code that had the ability to collect user data. In addition, 27 percent did not provide a privacy policy to users. Researchers found that most mHealth apps have a significant third-party presence and personal data transmission is extremely common.

Despite the growing number of healthcare data breaches, embracing modern technology is one crucial safeguard that can help hospitals prevent and recover from ransomware attacks. Over 70 percent of cybersecurity leaders from various sectors transferred at least half of their organization’s data to the cloud, according to a recent survey.   

Survey results indicated that centralizing data authorization and control along with network segmentation and backing up data can help healthcare organizations mitigate risk. Data security incidents can have destructive consequences on healthcare organizations, causing financial losses and delays in critical patient care.