Pharmacy Information Security
Information Security in Pharmacies
Information security is vital in many firms especially pharmacies and other sensitive fields. Security officers are, therefore, necessary to ensure both physical and logical safety. The Information Security Officer/Manager (ISO) will have different duties such as managing the information security functions in according to the firm's established guidelines and provisions/policies, providing reports to the firm's management at reasonable intervals, establishing and ensuring implementation of information security procedures and standards, according to the state's provisions regarding risk management policies, consulting and recommending to the pharmacy on issues of security enhancement, conducting information security analysis and assessment programs and many others.
Protecting medication, funds and health information
According to statistics, many health firms such as pharmacies and hospitals have adopted the electronic health records (EHR) model to store their information. However, these firms still use physical records such as filing to store their information. In adopting the EHR, pharmacies usually aim at improving the coordination with patients, reducing disparities, improving public health and enhancing privacy of information through secure data protection. Medication, funds and also information have to be protected to encourage quality service deliverance to the firms.
Access to the pharmacy
According to the Joint Commission on Accreditation of Healthcare Organizations (1998), a pharmacy is a designated security sensitive area. This calls for a well established security plan that will cover both the access measures and policies that will control movement within the building. In developing a plan, the information security officer will consider issues like the hours and durations of operation, accountability of access cards, lock combinations and keys, availability of physical security guards, authorized accesses, transportation and release of drugs, reporting in case of losses and replacement of security gadgets.
At the customer entrance, patients will not be allowed in after working hours and the security guards should emphasize on working hours especially if the pharmacy does not work 24 hours. Only licensed pharmacists will access the premises through the entrance after working hours, and not all nurses will be allowed to access after working durations, unless they are certified. Dual loch systems are recommended for the entrance, to assure security during the non-working time. The windows should be grilled and situated strategically to avoid access to the building through the windows. The backdoor is to be used by employees only, and non-employees should be restricted from using the door to ensure information is not discarded and that no materials are carried from the pharmacy through the back door (Joint Commission on Accreditation of Healthcare Organizations, 1998).
Physical Vulnerabilities and Threats
Because of the services provided in the pharmacies, there is a probability that the pharmacy premises and staff will be exposed to intrusion, bearing in mind the locations of the premises. Mostly, the buildings will be located in cities and towns that are vulnerable to crime and violence. There are many reasons that will lead to outsiders intruding into pharmacy buildings. In most cases, the intruders have malicious motives when accessing the pharmacy and this necessitates the need to adopt and implement physical security measures. Some of the examples of physical vulnerability and threats include; manual operations of equipments within the building. In such cases, when the movements are unavoidable such as the pulling and pushing of items using trolleys, thus steps ought to be followed in ensuring safety and reduce injury risks.
Lack of protective dressing could also be a physical risk in the pharmacy. In some instances, staff usually works without gloves, dust masks and goggles. Lack of first aid kits within the pharmacy is also a physical risk, especially to patients and staff. Other threats that require physical security enhancement may include; power loss, armed attack by intruders in the premises, disorderly conduct, assault on the staff, burglary and robbery, internal diversion and theft and many others (Fennelly, 2012).
Examples of intruder scenes/scenarios
Many reasons might lead to intruder entrance into the pharmacy. In most circumstances, the intruders have negative motives. To begin with, the intruder may be a disgruntled employee of the pharmacy, who was fired and is seeking revenge. After they are sent away, some of the employees usually surface back to bring restlessness and cause havoc to patients and in the current staff. Disgruntled families and family to the patients could also intrude the pharmacy with intentions of hurting people. Drug related invasions are the most common in pharmacies. However, inside the pharmacy, mentally challenged patients can also cause havoc, especially for patients...
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