Journal:Information technology and medical technology personnel’s perception regarding segmentation of medical devices: A focus group study
| Full article title | Information technology and medical technology personnel’s perception regarding segmentation of medical devices: A focus group study |
|---|---|
| Journal | Healthcare |
| Author(s) | Johansson, David; Jönsson, Patrik; Ivarsson, Bodil; Christiansson, Maria |
| Author affiliation(s) | Edith Cowan University, Embry-Riddle Aeronautical University |
| Primary contact | Email: david dot a dot johansson at skane dot se |
| Year published | 2020 |
| Volume and issue | 8(1) |
| Article # | 23 |
| DOI | 10.3390/healthcare8010023 |
| ISSN | 2227-9032 |
| Distribution license | Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International |
| Website | https://www.mdpi.com/2227-9032/8/1/23 |
| Download | https://www.mdpi.com/2227-9032/8/1/23/pdf (PDF) |
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This article should be considered a work in progress and incomplete. Consider this article incomplete until this notice is removed. |
Abstract
Objective: Segmentation is one way of improving data protection. The aim of this study was to investigate information technology (IT) and medical technology (MT) personnel’s perception in relation to ongoing segmentation of medical devices and IT infrastructure in the healthcare sector.
Methods: Focus group interviews with nine IT and nine MT personnel in a county council in southern Sweden were conducted. The interviews focused on two areas: positive expectations and misgivings. Digital recordings were transcribed verbatim and analyzed using qualitative content analysis.
Results: Responses related to two main areas: information security and implementation of segmentation. Informants stated that network segmentation would increase the overall level of cybersecurity for medical devices, addressing both insider and outsider threats. However, it would also increase the need for administration and the need for knowledge of the communication patterns of medical devices from the manufacturer’s perspective.
Conclusion: IT and MT personnel in a county council in southern Sweden believed that segmentation would increase cybersecurity but also increase administration and resource needs, which are important opinions to take into consideration. The present study can be used as a model for others to increase awareness of opinions of healthcare organizations.
Keywords: cybersecurity, healthcare technology, patient safety, staff attitudes
Introduction
Medical technology (MT) devices—as defined by the European Union's directive on medical devices[1] and information technology (IT) and device developers—serve an increasingly central role in clinical practice, improving patient health, safety, and quality of life. And the number of such medical devices that are connected to a network continues to grow.[2] [3–4]
References
- ↑ European Commission (14 June 1993). "Council Directive 93/42/EEC of 14 June 1993 concerning medical devices". EUR-Lex. https://eur-lex.europa.eu/eli/dir/1993/42/2007-10-11. Retrieved 20 January 2020.
- ↑ Abernethy, A.P.; Wheeler, J.L.; Bull, J. (2011). "Development of a health information technology-based data system in community-based hospice and palliative care". American Journal of Preventative Medicine 40 (5 Suppl. 2): S217–24. doi:10.1016/j.amepre.2011.01.012. PMID 21521597.
Notes
This presentation is faithful to the original, with only a few minor changes to presentation, grammar, and punctuation. In some cases important information was missing from the references, and that information was added.
