With the increase of health information technology used to store and access patient information, the likelihood of security breaches has also risen. In fact, according to the Canadian Medical Association Journal (CMAJ): In the United States, there was a whopping 97{0e601fc7fe3603dc36f9ca2f49ef4cd268b5950ef1bbcf1f795cc00e94cdd119} increase in the number of health records breached from 2010 to 2011… The number of patient records accessed in each breach has also increased substantially, from 26,968 (in 2010) to 49,394 (in 2011). Since August 2009, when the US government regulated that any breach affecting more than 500 patients be publicly disclosed, a total of 385 breaches, involving more than 19 million records, have been reported to the Department of Health and Human Services. A large portion of those breaches, 39{0e601fc7fe3603dc36f9ca2f49ef4cd268b5950ef1bbcf1f795cc00e94cdd119}, occurred because of a lost, stolen, or otherwise compromised portable electronic device—a problem that will likely only get worse as iPads, smartphones, and other gadgets become more common in hospitals. (CMAJ, 2012, p. E215). Consider your own experiences. Does your organization use portable electronic devices? What safeguards are in place to ensure the security of data and patient information? For this Discussion you consider ethical and security issues surrounding the protection of digital health information. To prepare Review the Learning Resources dealing with the security of digital health care information. Reflect on your own organization or one with which you are familiar, and think about how health information stored electronically is protected. Consider the nurse’s responsibility to ensure the protection of patient information. What strategies can you use? Reflect on ethical issues that are likely to arise with the increased access to newer, smaller, and more powerful technology tools. Consider strategies that can be implemented to ensure that the use of HIT contributes to an overall culture of safety.

Click here to read the health care workforce shortage and its implications on America’s hospitals, at the American Hospitals Association’s (AHA) website.

Select a hospital, which is not more than two hours away from your place of residence. Based on your readings and understanding, create a 3- to 4-page report in a Microsoft Word document, that includes:

A plan for a rural, medium-sized hospital to deal with short- and long-term workforce shortages.

Your plan should include the following elements:

• An introduction.
• A description of the health care workforce shortage and its implications.
• The aspects that need immediate attention and aspects that need long term attention. Provide a rationale on why these aspects need attention.
• A description of the financial implications for these issues.
• An explanation of the risks associated with these problems.
• Your recommendations to solve these problems.
• An explanation of the methods to measure the success of the plan.
• A description of the next steps, if the plan failed.
• A conclusion and a reference list.