DALLAS (SMU) — SMU's Advanced Computer Education Center in Houston is now
offering training to help healthcare professionals comply with new federal
legislation designed to protect patient privacy.
The Health Insurance Portability & Accountability Act
(HIPAA), passed by Congress in 1996, established standards to ensure the
security, confidentiality and integrity of healthcare transactions. The
legislation requires that anyone with access to patient information –
including lawyers, doctors, athletic trainers, dentists and insurance
companies – take classes to learn how to implement the legislation.
Selected healthcare professionals also are required to
take exams to prove their competence in the new areas. Healthcare
professionals and organizations must become compliant by mandated dates in
2003.
SMU has partnered with the HIPPA Academy, a private
company based in Des Moines, Iowa, to offer HIPAA classes in the Houston
area.
“The HIPAA Academy fills a void created by the vast
requirements within the HIPAA legislation,” said Allen Nguyen, president for
the HIPAA Academy Program. “People don't know where to go to prepare
for HIPAA compliancy. Business professionals in the health care and
insurance industries, as well as IT professionals, will find that the HIPAA
Academy programs are a critical first step for acquiring HIPAA knowledge and
skills to participate as valuable members of HIPAA compliance teams within
organizations.”
Uday O. Ali Pabrai, chairman of The HIPAA Academy,
previously created the Certified Internet Webmaster (CIW) program and was the
co-creator of the security certification program, SCP.
Tom Bonesteel, director of SMU’s Advanced Computer
Education Centers, said the HIPAA training programs will be one more addition
to an extensive list of classes that the center currently offers to
individuals and the business community.
“This will be a real opportunity for SMU to
serve the healthcare industry and its partners by providing the training
necessary to comply with the federally mandated HIPAA regulations protecting
health information contained in an individual’s medical records,” Bonesteel
said.
SMU’s Advanced Computer Education Center in Houston
already provides training in Microsoft Windows, UNIX Administration, Oracle
DBA and Cisco. The center also recently added project management courses as
well as SAIR/Linux certifications. For more information on the center, visit
www.smu-training.com
For more information on the HIPAA Academy, visit its
web site at www.HIPAAacademy.Net.
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