Does your hospital have a cybersecurity crisis management plan? According to the 2015 Data Breach Industry Forecast, data breaches cost the healthcare industry $5.6 billion each year. Having a plan could be the difference between a costly and time-consuming ordeal that hurts your reputation or having your valuable information saved.
Your communications team should establish clear protocols for departments to report security breaches to top management. When putting together the protocols, think about answering the following questions: What level of information is at risk? How many people are affected? What steps should be taken to secure remaining data?
Another important step is monitoring the media (traditional or social). You also should keep a running spreadsheet to share with management. If reporters contact your hospital, respond promptly (e.g. acknowledge you received request).
Once the cybersecurity plan is completed, you should add it to your overall crisis communications plan and keep it updated every quarter. Having this plan in place also can be a talking point to patients to reassure them that the hospital is doing everything it can to protect against and mitigate a breach.
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