Protection of patients’ data vital
Development of a centralised data system is expected to improve access to health records, benefiting both healthcare providers and patients.
What you need to know:
- Innovations like these are transforming lives. But with this progress comes a price: the vulnerability of patient data. Healthcare data is among the most sensitive personal information.
- When mishandled, the consequences can be devastating. The Data Protection Act, 2019 was introduced to address these risks. It aligns with international standards like the GDPR and established the Office of the Data Protection Commissioner (ODPC) to oversee compliance.
In a small hospital in rural Kenya, a nurse struggles to find a patient’s medical record among a pile of worn-out files. With no digital system in place, retrieving data is slow, chaotic, and sometimes incomplete.
Across the country, in a private hospital in Nairobi, a different challenge unfolds. A ransomware attack cripples the facility’s digital systems, holding sensitive patient records hostage and threatening to leak them unless a hefty ransom is paid. These contrasting scenarios reflect Kenya’s digital healthcare transformation.
Kenya’s healthcare sector is undergoing a revolution. Electronic health records (EHRs), mobile health apps, and telemedicine platforms are making healthcare more accessible and efficient.
Patients in remote areas now consult doctors through mobile apps, while hospitals leverage digital tools to monitor diseases, allocate resources, and improve care delivery.
Innovations like these are transforming lives. But with this progress comes a price: the vulnerability of patient data. Healthcare data is among the most sensitive personal information.
When mishandled, the consequences can be devastating. The Data Protection Act, 2019 was introduced to address these risks. It aligns with international standards like the GDPR and established the Office of the Data Protection Commissioner (ODPC) to oversee compliance.
However, gaps remain. In many rural hospitals, the shift from paper-based records to digital systems has yet to occur, primarily due to limited resources and infrastructure.
Where digital systems exist, cybersecurity measures are often weak, leaving patient records vulnerable to breaches. Globally, ransomware attacks on hospitals have surged, and Kenya is not immune.
Addressing these challenges requires a multi-faceted approach. Hospitals need to secure their systems with robust tools like encryption, firewalls, and regular audits.
Training healthcare workers on privacy laws and secure data management is equally critical. Patients, too, must be empowered with knowledge of their data privacy rights.
Mr Kamande is a technology policy analyst. [email protected]
