Solution Briefs

Maturity Models are a popular technique that organizations use to evaluate certain business processes to produce a desired set of outcomes. They map an actionable path towards a more organized and systematic way of doing business. When it comes to third-party vendor risk management in healthcare, maturity models can help healthcare delivery organizations (HDOs) understand where they are – and where they want to be – in terms of the people, processes, and technologies deployed.

Healthcare delivery organizations (HDOs) have many options to consider when seeking to improve their cybersecurity risk management programs. From spreadsheets to certifications, managed services to risk ratings, and GRC to risk exchanges, all of these solutions can bring significant benefits to cyber risk management, driving insight and improvement across an organization’s third party and enterprise risk management functions.

Over the last two decades, healthcare has spent billions to transform from paper-based care to electronic health records, and billions more have been spent on creating a full digital care delivery system. With this shift has come extraordinary gains in clinical performance, but also substantial increases in cyber risk. And despite heroic efforts by healthcare delivery organizations (HDOs) to keep pace, the inexorable confluence of an ever-evolving threat landscape and an ever-expanding attack surface seem to keep us always one step behind.

Healthcare IT, security and risk leaders must embrace five key business case elements to secure the funding needed to transform their cybersecurity programs

With the proliferation of ransomware, healthcare delivery organizations (HDOs) are reckoning with a ‘new math’ in cybersecurity and its impact on the business of healthcare. Over the last decade, cyber threats have evolved with ever-greater malignancy and now seek to shut down care operations itself. Not surprisingly, regulatory fines and cyber insurance premiums are skyrocketing, while ransomware continues to put patient safety at risk and drain the coffers of even well-managed HDOs.

Patient safety and care disruption are now in the cross-hairs of cyber attackers, leaving many healthcare leaders to wonder whether their organizations are truly prepared when an incident occurs. Healthcare leaders must be able to actively track, measure, adjust, and improve progress and effectiveness of their cybersecurity program.

The father of corporate leadership, Peter Drucker, said that “culture eats strategy for breakfast” meaning that an organization’s culture is not only stronger than any single strategy, it determines the ultimate success of the enterprise. Regardless of an organization’s cybersecurity strategy or program, if employees don’t embrace it as part of the culture, the odds of success are very low.

More than ever, healthcare providers rely on software technology, connected devices and a third-party ecosystem of vendors and suppliers to deliver high-quality care to patients. However, patient safety and care operations are under an ever-increasing risk of cybersecurity attacks and incidents.