Social Media Policies: Ensuring Compliance with HIPAA Rules

 

SHSMD Education Webinars


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SHSMD members work diligently to ensure their media policies are in compliance with the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) rules. Although HHS has not altered their rules, there has been attention by the Office for Civil Rights (OCR) to address HIPAA compliance issues. Now is the time to revisit how the HIPAA rules may apply to media interactions.

View this presentation led by the American Hospital Association which will focus on the following:

  1. Review of the existing applicable rules and their consistent reflection in the recent FAQ response from HHS related to interactions with media
  2. Discussion of how one SHSMD member organization enhanced its privacy policies and procedures to be adaptable to new and different media interactions while ensuring continued compliance with the existing HIPAA rules

Presenters:

Debra J. Stevens, MBA, APR, Director of Marketing and Communications, Phoenix Children's Hospital

Debra Stevens joined Phoenix Children’s Hospital in 2006 as Director of Marketing and Communications. She believes that healing a child can change the world and loves being part of that change. She leads a team responsible for brand management, advertising, public relations and the Hospital’s web presence, among other marketing and communications efforts at Phoenix Children’s. Prior to joining Phoenix Children’s, Stevens spent 14 years in various marketing roles at the Phoenix Suns organization, including vice president of public relations and executive director of Phoenix Suns Charities. While there, she led the marketing efforts for a variety of sports and entertainment programs, including the development and grand openings of US Airways Center and Chase Field, NBA All-Star Weekend, and other major events. She is a longtime, accredited member and former chapter president for the Public Relations Society of America. She is also active in health care professional associations including the Children’s Hospital Association and SHSMD. Stevens earned her MBA from University of Phoenix and her Bachelor of Science from Arizona State University. She resides in Scottsdale, Ariz., with her husband and two large dogs. 

Gerald Roy, Vice President, Office of Business Integrity, Chief Compliance and Privacy Officer, Phoenix Children's Hospital

As the Chief Compliance and Privacy Officer, Gerry is responsible for leading the PCH compliance and privacy program. Gerry’s chief areas of focus are to ensure ongoing program effectiveness, monitor the day-to-day compliance activities of our hospital enterprise, and develop, implement and oversee a comprehensive compliance work plan. Gerry recently retired from a career spanning 26 years with the federal government, primarily with the Office of Inspector General for Health and Human Services (OIG)  where he focused on health care law enforcement and the oversight of public entitlement programs, including Medicare, Medicaid and HHS grant programs. During his tenure with the OIG, Gerry was selected to assume various senior management and senior executive positions, including serving as the Special Agent in Charge for the Kansas City Regional Office, as well as the Deputy Inspector General for Investigations in Washington, D.C. Gerry has worked extensively with the OIG Office of Counsel on compliance issues and strategy. He also has been actively involved with the Health Care Compliance Association and instrumental in forming an executive compliance dashboard for health care organizations. Gerry is a graduate of the University of California at San Diego and holds a Master’s Degree in Criminology, Law and Society from the University of California at Irvine.

Lawrence Hughes, Assistant General Counsel, American Hospital Association

Lawrence Hughes has more than 25 years of expertise in health policy and law and focuses on providing legal analysis and support for the AHA’s key advocacy initiatives, including labor and employment, health information privacy and HIPAA, quality, compliance, and other legal and regulatory issues. Mr. Hughes is admitted to the bars of Illinois and Washington, D.C. He received his J.D. degree from Loyola University Chicago School of Law. Mr. Hughes engaged in graduate study in Public Policy Analysis and Public Management at Duke University in Durham, NC. He received his bachelor’s degree in Human Development and Social Policy from Northwestern University, Evanston, IL. He was for many years an adjunct faculty member in the Institute for Health Law in the School of Law at Loyola University Chicago where he taught Legal Research and Writing in the first year J.D. and the Masters of Jurisprudence in Health Law programs. Mr. Hughes speaks frequently on issues of concern to hospitals and health systems. He is a long-time member of the American Health Lawyers Association.