COMPUTERIZATION

If a nursing home is converting to an electronic paperless health information management system: A. policies and procedures must be established and maintained that require password protection of the clinical database; B. any outside contract for health information management services must include a provision that the company providing the services assumes responsibility for maintaining the confidentiality of all health information within its control; C. audit trails must be developed for computer applications to determine the source and date of all entries and deletions; D. backup systems must be implemented and maintained; E. preventative maintenance must be implemented and maintained; F. there must be a plan for preparing, securing, and retaining archived copies of computerized clinical databases; G. procedures must be implemented for preparing and securing daily, weekly, and monthly archived copies of computerized clinical databases; and H. there must be confidentiality and protection from unauthorized use of active and archived computerized clinical databases.