For healthcare institutions, it is not only important to safeguard patient information in the present healthcare system, but also a legal necessity. Strict rules governing electronic protected health information (ePHI) are established by the Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act (HIPAA).
These rules say how digital information must be stored, accessed, and sent. One of the most important choices for businesses that work with healthcare data is picking the right web hosting environment. Dedicated servers are one of the most reliable and safe options for HIPAA compliance among the choices available.
Keep reading to learn why dedicated servers are important for HIPAA-compliant hosting.
6 Ways Dedicated Servers Ensure HIPAA-Compliant Hosting
A single hosting solution won’t be enough to make sure you follow HIPAA rules. It needs an environment that is safe, adaptable, and completely under your control. Dedicated servers naturally provide these things. Dedicated servers provide healthcare organisations with the means to protect sensitive patient data and comply with regulations. These tools include full control over security settings, reliable data isolation, and custom auditing.
Let’s read ahead to explore some ways dedicated servers ensure HIPAA-compliant hosting.
1. Full Control Over Security Configurations
You don’t have to share resources with anyone else if you have a dedicated server. That means you can set up your server any way you want. You can customise everything from firewall rules to access controls to encryption protocols to fit your security needs. HIPAA says that access controls and data encryption must be very strict when data is being sent and when it is not.
Dedicated servers let IT teams install and manage advanced security tools, keep up with updates, and stay compliant all the time. With these kinds of servers, you don’t have to depend on a hosting provider’s generic security setup to do this. You should stop using shared servers if you also run a healthcare or medical business. You can rent dedicated servers from Hosting Mena that can be customised and scaled to keep your business HIPAA compliant.
2. BAA Compatibility
A Business Associate Agreement (BAA) is a must-have for hosting that follows HIPAA rules. This legal agreement makes sure that your hosting company knows and follows HIPAA rules when they handle ePHI.
Most good hosting companies only offer BAAs with plans for dedicated or managed servers. Shared and budget hosting options usually don’t work. If you have a dedicated server, you’re more likely to find hosts who are willing to sign a BAA and do what it says they will do.
3. Data Isolation
HIPAA stresses the importance of keeping data separate to lower the chance of unauthorised access or accidental exposure. Data from more than one user or client is stored on the same physical machine on shared servers. This increases the chance of data bleed/cross-contamination.
Dedicated servers provide physical isolation, which means all of your organization’s data and resources are only accessible by you. This provides less vulnerability from external threats and provides you with total control of your hosting environment, sufficient for HIPAA compliance.
4. Scalability with Compliance in Mind
Your hosting needs may change as your business grows or takes on more patients. Dedicated servers let you scale up or down without breaking the rules. You might need to add more storage for electronic health records, make health analytics work faster, or add telehealth features.
You need access to machines that can be upgraded or downgraded as needed, in this case. Dedicated servers can give you this kind of functionality. They can be made bigger or smaller in both directions, and security controls and compliance measures will still be in place.
5. Monitoring & Auditing
One of the most significant requirements of HIPAA is to be able to monitor who can access patient information. Hosted servers allow you to install custom auditing and real-time monitoring software, which provides administrators with complete access to what is happening inside the system.
This type of monitoring ensures suspicious activity is rapidly discovered and prevented. It can perform activities such as identifying unauthorized login attempts and monitoring how information is accessed. It also assists in maintaining comprehensive audit logs, which are extremely valuable for HIPAA audits and internal audits.
6. Enhanced Backup & Disaster Recovery
Healthcare workers need to have data availability at all times, including outages and emergencies. The HIPAA requirement of the contingency plan states that there must be appropriate backup and disaster recovery plans.
With a dedicated server, organizations can have automated backups, offsite backups, and disaster recovery plans that meet their specific needs. Therefore, loss of sensitive patient information is minimized, and if the system goes down the data will be able to be restored.
Make Your Organization HIPAA-Compliant with Dedicated Servers
If you work with ePHI in any way, buying a dedicated server is not only a technical choice; it’s also a legal protection. Because of this, you should be careful when choosing an online host and server. Dedicated servers will not only help you follow the rules, but they will also help you earn your patients’ trust by keeping their information safe. To make your business HIPAA-compliant with dedicated servers, contact a reputable hosting company today.
