With the increasing reliance on digital technologies and data-driven decision-making in the healthcare sector, the need for a robust analytics solution that ensures the protection of patient information has become paramount.
The data breaches in the healthcare sector were reported to be the highest at 79% in the past 14 years. HIPAA Journal reported that there were 14 incidents in 2023 that affected more than 7,000,000 patients and cost $10.1 million in 2022.
Thus, the need for patient-protected analytics solutions has become a key concern.
Google Analytics is a powerful tool for tracking website performance and user behavior. However, for organizations that handle protected health information (PHI) and must comply with the Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act (HIPAA), using Google Analytics in its default state is not compliant.
Therefore, we offer a comprehensive guide of the best analytical solutions for you that are HIPAA compliant. Moreover, we will also help you make your Google Analytics HIPAA-compliant so that you can leverage its advanced and scalable features.
Piwik PRO – An Accurate and Flexible Solution
Piwik PRO has emerged as a cutting-edge analytics solution for the healthcare industry in the United States. It provides a comprehensive analytics suite this is specifically tailored to meet the data protection and compliance demands of healthcare professionals.
This platform allows healthcare organizations to effectively gather, process, and analyze sensitive patient data whilst complying with the privacy and security requirements of the Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act (HIPAA).
It remains HIPAA compliant by anonymizing and pseudonymizing data which guarantees that individual identities remain protected during data processing.
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Note: Anonymizing or data masking and pseudonymizing data is the process of erasing identifiable characteristics of data to protect sensitive information. |
Moreover, Piwik PRO grants healthcare organizations complete control of data access and facilitates easy data usage monitoring through the use of advanced access controls and detailed audit logs.
In addition to this, Piwik PRO also provides flexibility for organizations to choose where they want to store their data through a hosting model that best aligns with their security and scalability needs by offering on-premises and cloud deployment options.
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Features and Benefits
1. HIPAA Compliance
To fulfill the privacy regulations imposed by HIPPA, Piwik PRO ensures patient data is securely processed without directly identifying individuals by anonymization and pseudonymization techniques.
Moreover, it provides granular data access controls to restrict data access only to authorized personnel. This platform also maintains detailed audit logs to enable easy tracking of data access and changes.
2. Customized Needs
For customized security needs, Piwik PRO allows organizations to choose whether to host their servers for complete control and data sovereignty or to use the cloud option for ease of setup and maintenance which is ideal for organizations looking for a hassle-free solution.
3. Advanced Analytics
Piwik PRO enables users to create personalized dashboards with relevant metrics and KPIs. It also empowers healthcare providers to employ conversion funnels to analyze patient journeys and identify bottlenecks alongside segmentation based on various factors for improved services.
4. Pricing
Piwik PRO has a transparent pricing model that makes it easier for healthcare organizations to resource budget for their analytics needs. It helps organizations through customizable plans and allows them to choose from a range of plans that align with their specific requirements.
Reviews `
Users appreciate Piwik PRO’s HIPAA compliance, as it addresses the unique challenges of handling sensitive healthcare data. They have also positively received its customization as they allow healthcare organizations to adapt the platform to their specific needs.
Moreover, the user-friendly interface and detailed reporting are praised for their ability to provide actionable insights.
As Piwik PRO is a reliable and HIPAA-compliant analytical solution, its commitment to data security, customization options, and advanced analytics has made it a valuable choice for healthcare professionals seeking actionable insights while ensuring patient data privacy.
Mixpanel – A Powerful Event Analytics Tool
Mixpanel is a leading HIPAA-compliant analytics platform that is uniquely tailored to meet the specific demands of healthcare organizations that are increasingly embracing data-driven strategies to improve patient care.
It has emerged as a robust solution to enhance operational efficiency and optimize decision-making processes for organizations that align with the stringent privacy and security requirements mandated by HIPAA.
This platform adheres to the regulations of HIPAA and provides comprehensive documentation, privacy protocols, and stringent data handling practices to give healthcare organizations the confidence to handle sensitive patient data ethically and responsibly.
Mixpanel has a very user-friendly interface and uses powerful analytics tools to enable healthcare professionals to customize dashboards, reports, and data visualization to track key performance indicators (KPIs) specific to their objectives.
The platform offers real-time data capabilities to further enhance decision-making that enables immediate responses to emerging trends and opportunities in the healthcare sector.
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Features and Benefits
1. HIPAA Compliance
Mixpanel ensures the protection of patient identities by anonymizing and encrypting data during processing. This platform also allows organizations to implement granular access controls, ensuring that data is only accessible to authorized personnel.
It also maintains detailed audit logs to track data access and changes that provide an added layer of data security and accountability.
2. Customized Needs
Data analysts can design custom dashboards and reports, focusing on the specific metrics that matter most to their healthcare initiatives. They can also use data visualization tools to make it easier for others to interpret complex data and identify trends or patterns.
3. Advanced Analytics
Mixpanel enables users to segment patient data based on attributes like demographics, behavior, and more, facilitating targeted marketing and personalized experiences.
It allows healthcare providers to create conversion funnels to analyze patient journeys, identify points for improvement, and optimize healthcare services.
4. Pricing
Mixpanel has different pricing plans:
- Flexible Plans: There is a range of plans that allows healthcare organizations to select a package that suits their specific needs and scale as their requirements evolve.
- Transparent Pricing: This platform offers very transparent pricing details upfront, ensuring clarity and ease in budgeting for analytics solutions.
- Free Tier: It offers a free tier with limited features which makes it an accessible option for smaller healthcare businesses or businesses that want to experience their features.
Reviews
Data analysts have shown appreciation for Mixpanel’s ease of integration and use which allows seamless data tracking across various platforms. The platform’s robust analytics capabilities and real-time data analysis have been well-received for aiding in data-driven decision-making.
Amplitude – An Acclaimed Analytics Platform
Amplitude has been specifically designed to cater to the unique needs of the healthcare industry to facilitate data-driven insights, enhance patient care, optimize processes, and make informed decisions.
This platform recognizes how critical data privacy and security are in healthcare, thus, it showcases its unwavering commitment to HIPAA compliance through robust security measures, including data encryption, access controls, and regular security audits.
By safeguarding patient data and adhering to the highest standards of data handling, Amplitude provides healthcare providers with a secure environment to harness data insights responsibly.
It has versatile analytics capabilities that empower healthcare professionals to track user behavior across digital channels, gain deep insights into patient engagement, and identify key trends and patterns that inform better decision-making.
Amplitude has a user-friendly interface and powerful data visualization tools that facilitate data interpretation which enables healthcare organizations to draw actionable insights from complex datasets.
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Features and Benefits
1. HIPAA Compliance
Amplitude employs industry-standard data encryption techniques to safeguard patient data during transmission and storage. The platform provides granular access controls to ensure usage by authorized personnel only for sensitive patient information access.
Moreover, it conducts regular security audits to maintain and strengthen data protection practices.
2. Customized Needs
Data analysts can design custom reports and dashboards to gain personalized insights that focus on specific metrics that matter most to their healthcare initiatives.
They can also employ the use of data visualization tools to make it easier to interpret complex data and identify trends or patterns.
3. Advanced Analytics
Analysts can segment patient data based on attributes like demographics and behavior to facilitate targeted marketing and personalized experiences.
Healthcare providers can create conversion funnels to analyze patient journeys, identify points for improvement, and optimize healthcare services.
4. Pricing
Amplitude provides a transparent model with information upfront to allow healthcare organizations to budget their analytics needs confidently. Organizations can choose from a range of plans that align with their specific requirements.
It allows organizations to scale prices with the organization’s data needs, thereby, accommodating both smaller practices and larger healthcare enterprises.
Reviews
Data analysts at healthcare organizations trust Amplitude’s powerful analytics capabilities that provide valuable insights for improving healthcare operations. They praise the platform’s ease of integration and user-friendly interface that has enhanced the overall analytics experience.
Despite potential challenges related to the learning curve and pricing, Amplitude remains a trusted choice for healthcare organizations looking to leverage analytics for better patient outcomes and data-driven healthcare innovation.
How to Make Google Analytics HIPAA Compliant?
Google Analytics is a powerful tool of choice worldwide and it should be discarded in the healthcare sector due to HIPAA regulations.
Granted that the raw form of Google Analytics is not in coherence with the HIPAA regulations, however, it can still be used with third-party integrations and a careful understanding of the security and privacy obligations of patient data.
To make GA HIPAA compliant, follow these steps:
- Understand HIPAA Requirements: Familiarize yourself with HIPAA regulations, particularly the Security Rule and Privacy Rule. These rules set the standards for protecting PHI and outline the required administrative, physical, and technical safeguards.
- Business Associate Agreement (BAA): Ensure that you sign a Business Associate Agreement (BAA) with Google in case you want to use Google services such as BigQueyr and Google Cloud for complete non-disclosure.
- Anonymize IP Addresses: Enable IP anonymization in Google Analytics to prevent the storage of full IP addresses, which are considered PHI. This feature ensures that only a portion of the IP address is retained.
- Disable Data Collection for Sensitive Information: Refrain from sending any sensitive data to Google Analytics. Exclude personally identifiable information (PII) and other PHI, such as names, social security numbers, and medical record numbers.
- Exclude URLs with PHI: Use Google Analytics filters to exclude specific URLs that may contain PHI. This prevents any accidental tracking of protected data.
- Configure Data Retention: Adjust the data retention settings to align with your organization’s HIPAA policies. You can choose to retain data for the minimum period necessary or customize data retention periods for different categories of data.
- Review Third-Party Integrations: If you’re using third-party tools or plugins alongside Google Analytics, verify that they also comply with HIPAA regulations and do not inadvertently transmit PHI.
- Regularly Monitor and Audit: Continuously monitor your Google Analytics account and conduct periodic audits to identify any potential data breaches or unauthorized access to PHI.
Remember that maintaining compliance is an ongoing process, therefore, you need to review your configurations and procedures regularly to stay current with any changes in regulations or technology.
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Tip: It would be helpful to educate your staff on HIPAA compliance and data privacy best practices. Ensure that they understand the importance of not sending PHI to Google Analytics. Moreover, to ensure complete data security, we recommend you devise an incident response plan to handle security breaches promptly. |
If you require more assistance to make Google Analytics HIPAA compliant then you can contact our team to help audit your data and ensure that your organization meets all HIPAA requirements.
At the End of the Day,
As the healthcare industry increasingly relies on digital technologies and data-driven decision-making, the need for robust and HIPAA-compliant analytics solutions has become essential.
Therefore, in this post, we have discussed three top analytics platforms which offer features tailored to meet the data protection and compliance demands of healthcare professionals.
Piwik PRO stands out as an accurate and flexible solution, safeguarding patient data through anonymization and pseudonymization techniques while providing granular data access controls.
Mixpanel, on the other hand, offers powerful event analytics tools, real-time data capabilities, and a user-friendly interface to facilitate data-driven decision-making for healthcare organizations.
Amplitude is an acclaimed analytics platform that prioritizes data privacy and security, offering versatile analytical capabilities to cater to healthcare’s unique needs.
If you are interested in using Google Analytics while complying with HIPAA regulations then you can take valuable steps to make Google Analytics HIPAA-compliant such as emphasizing the need for a BAA, IP anonymization, excluding sensitive data, and configuring data retention.
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