HIPAA training is a critical part of legal compliance in the healthcare industry, but the law can be vague on exactly what’s required.
How often do healthcare workers need HIPAA training? How do you make sure that everyone gets the necessary and appropriate information? What documentation is required?
As a reliable HIPAA training provider, we’re familiar with the anxiety of getting HIPAA training right. Below, we’ll help you sort through the specifics of the training requirements for healthcare HIPAA compliance.
What Is HIPAA Training?
HIPAA training – sometimes referred to as HIPAA certification – covers the regulations and requirements set forth by the Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act (HIPAA).
In particular, HIPAA training typically focuses on the act’s Privacy Rule, which sets the standard for who can access sensitive health information as well as when and how, and the complementary Security Rule, which lays out the measures that must be taken to keep particular types of information out of unauthorized hands.
Through HIPAA training, healthcare workers learn what counts as protected health information (PHI) under HIPAA, who is authorized to access PHI, what measures they must take to protect PHI, and what actions would violate HIPAA’s PHI protections.
What Are the HIPAA Training Requirements for Nurses and Doctors?
First, HIPAA training isn’t just for nurses and doctors. Instead, the regulations say that all members of a covered entity's workforce must be trained on policies and procedures related to PHI “as necessary and appropriate” for them to “carry out their functions.”
A new employee’s initial HIPAA training must be provided “within a reasonable period of time” after joining.
That’s it. The regulations don’t specify training content or provide a comprehensive list of the roles that need in-depth HIPAA training. Instead, it leaves covered entities and business associates to determine what level of training is necessary and appropriate for each member of their workforce.
Does HIPAA Training Need to Be Renewed Annually?
Just as HIPAA doesn’t give covered entities much to go on in terms of initial training, it also doesn’t prescribe a specific HIPAA refresher course frequency, the way that OSHA occasionally does.
The regulations explicitly require additional HIPAA training for anyone affected by “a material change in the policies and procedures” of HIPAA, and that the retraining be held “within a reasonable period of time after the material change becomes effective.”
Beyond that, it doesn’t specify any requirements for a HIPAA refresher course.
What HIPAA Training Documentation Is Required?
HIPAA does explicitly require covered entities to document all HIPAA training and retain this proof for a minimum of six years.
What Are the Accepted Best Practices for Healthcare HIPAA Compliance Training?
Given a lack of specificity in the text of the law itself, healthcare organizations and other covered entities have developed a set of best practices over time for what should be included in HIPAA training, when HIPAA training needs to be repeated, and who needs to learn what.
This is one of those times when going along with your industry’s professional consensus can protect your organization from HIPAA compliance violations.
Who Needs HIPAA Training?
The text of the law says that all members of a covered entity’s workforce need HIPAA training, so at the very least, every single member of a healthcare organization’s staff needs some degree of education when they begin to work for the organization.
For staff who won’t be granted access to PHI, the generally accepted practice is HIPAA awareness training, which introduces the basics of the law so that these employees know not to share or attempt to access PHI.
Anyone with access to PHI will need more in-depth HIPAA certification tailored to their role and level of access. Ideally, each employee gets training in HIPAA fundamentals while getting emphasis on the relevant information that applies to their job.
For example, cybersecurity and IT staff will need an in-depth understanding of all mandatory technical safeguards, while other employees may only need the technical knowledge to create strong passwords and avoid phishing attempts.
Patient-facing staff need an in-depth understanding of what can be shared with loved ones or discussed with colleagues, while marketing staff need to understand the social media implications of HIPAA.
It’s a lot to consider. Many organizations find it easiest to rely on professionally designed HIPAA compliance training like ours to take the uncertainty and guesswork out of who gets what. More on this later.
How Often Do Healthcare Workers Need HIPAA Training?
Over time, the healthcare industry has settled on annual training being a best practice for a HIPAA refresher course. This keeps the HIPAA rules for healthcare workers at the front of everyone’s minds and creates a culture of healthcare HIPAA compliance for the organization.
There are circumstances where healthcare workers may need HIPAA training more frequently, however. When an organization’s policies and procedures change, employees need retraining to ensure compliance. Workers should also be assigned HIPAA training when their supervisors get any indication that their training is incomplete or out of date. For example, if someone accidentally violates HIPAA or uses an old procedure, a HIPAA refresher course is appropriate to get them back on track.
Get Stress-Free Role-Specific HIPAA Training Online
We’ve been a reputable compliance training provider for over 25 years. When you take HIAA training with us, you know that it’s thorough, effectively designed, and up to date with the latest information.
Our online courses are self-paced and mobile-friendly so that staff can work through the material at their own speed, whenever and wherever they’re best equipped to learn. Our online platform makes it easy to assign and track course completion, as well as safeguard your training documentation for years to come.
We have role-specific solutions for everyone who needs HIPAA training, from healthcare workers to medical office staff and dental offices. We even have training for business associates!
Enroll today to get started.
