The impacts of relevant standards and regulations on data usage and security

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• Determine the impacts of relevant standards and regulations on data usage and security
Scenario
You are a data professional working for Surge Consulting. Your company has three clients that are looking to grow their organization. Each organization must comply with one or more of the regulations you have learned about so far in class:
• A physician’s association
• A marketing firm
• A community college
All three clients are looking to expand their infrastructure and offer additional services. As a data professional, you are aware that there are real-life scenarios for each organization where regulations affect the data that these organizations collect, analyze, protect, and share. A major step in each organization’s planned expansion is to review practices for handling the data they collect and have access to.
Your role in this project is to choose one client and create a business brief to explain how data regulations will affect that client’s specific expansion project.
In the brief, you will provide recommendations for outlining and designing the client’s data governance and security plans, policies, or protocols. You will also select one of the provided ethical scenarios this client is likely to face and discuss the appropriate ethical considerations for a data professional based on the regulations. Your recommendations should be based on the data regulations enforced by the governing body of the respective industry.
Directions
Begin by reviewing the client descriptions and scenarios found in the Supporting Materials section (below). Choose one client profile and one scenario for your project. To create your brief, use the Business Brief Template found in the Supporting Materials section. For each section in the template, write 1–3 paragraphs that detail your findings and recommendations.
Specifically, you must address the following critical elements:
1. Describe the purpose of regulatory bodies and how they relate to data standards and regulations.

a. Specify the basic purpose and history of each regulatory body that affects your chosen client.
b. Describe the types of data that the regulatory bodies govern and how these bodies will enforce their regulations.
c. Give examples from the scenario of the types of client data that would be protected by the specific regulatory bodies.
2. Explain the impact of data regulatory changes on an organization

a. Discuss the impact of regulatory changes on your chosen client and its customers.
b. What organization policies could change if regulations became more restrictive? Less restrictive?
c. Considering the scenario, discuss how a regulatory change could impact your client or its customers.
3. Discuss regulating data usage, including the handling of sensitive data.
a. Discuss the benefits and challenges of handling sensitive data versus non-sensitive data.
b. Discuss how your client should proceed if it is unsure of how certain data is regulated.
c. Use the scenario to discuss how your client’s company should train staff to appropriately manage sensitive and non-sensitive data.
4. Discuss the various roles in the data industry responsible for maintaining data standards, regulations, and data security in an organization.
a. Using the scenario, identify the roles that would be responsible for enforcing regulations.
b. Determine if there are any regulatory bodies that also review and enforce regulations for the client.
c. Give examples of data roles that are responsible for maintaining standards and security and that the client should be sure to have in place.
What to Submit
Use the Business Brief Template to submit your expansion proposal to the client. Be sure to include the name of the client you selected. Replace the bracketed text ([text]) in each section of the template with your responses. All references must be cited in APA format.

 

 

Sample Solution

You are a data professional working for Surge Consulting. Your company has three clients: a physician’s association, a marketing firm, and a community college. You are to choose one client and create a business brief to explain how data regulations will affect their specific expansion project.

Client Selection:

For this brief, I will select the physician’s association as the client. The healthcare industry is heavily regulated, and the physician’s association is likely to face significant data regulations.

Business Brief

Client: Physician’s Association

Project: Expansion of services to include telehealth and remote patient monitoring

1. Regulatory Bodies and Data Standards

The physician’s association is subject to a variety of data regulations, including:

  • Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act (HIPAA): HIPAA governs the privacy and security of protected health information (PHI).  
  • General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR): While primarily focused on European data subjects, GDPR can also impact organizations that process the personal data of EU residents.  
  • State and local privacy laws: Many states and localities have their own data privacy laws that may apply to the physician’s association.  

These regulatory bodies enforce data standards and regulations to protect the privacy and security of individuals’ personal health information. They have the authority to investigate and impose penalties for non-compliance.

2. Impact of Data Regulatory Changes

Regulatory changes can have a significant impact on healthcare organizations, including:

  • Increased costs: Compliance with data regulations can be expensive, requiring investments in technology, training, and personnel.  
  • Operational challenges: Implementing and maintaining compliance with data regulations can be complex and time-consuming.
  • Reputational risk: Failure to comply with data regulations can lead to reputational damage, fines, and legal liabilities.  

In the case of the physician’s association, regulatory changes could impact its ability to expand telehealth and remote patient monitoring services. For example, new regulations may require additional security measures to protect patient data transmitted over the internet.

3. Regulating Data Usage

Sensitive data, such as patient health information, requires special handling and protection. The physician’s association should:

  • Implement robust security measures: This includes encryption, access controls, and regular security assessments.
  • Train staff on data privacy and security: Ensure that all staff members are aware of their obligations under data protection laws.
  • Conduct regular risk assessments: Identify and mitigate potential risks to data security.
  • Obtain appropriate consents: Obtain informed consent from patients before collecting and using their personal health information.

If the physician’s association is unsure about how certain data is regulated, it should consult with legal counsel or a data privacy expert.

4. Roles Responsible for Data Standards, Regulations, and Security

Several roles within the physician’s association would be responsible for enforcing data regulations:

  • Data privacy officer: Oversees data privacy and security initiatives.
  • Information security officer: Manages the organization’s security infrastructure.
  • Compliance officer: Ensures compliance with relevant laws and regulations.
  • IT staff: Implements and maintains technical controls to protect data.

The physician’s association should also consider engaging with external consultants or auditors to ensure compliance with data regulations.

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