Information Security of Patient-Centred Services Utilising the German Nationwide Health Information Technology Infrastructure

Health information technology can have positive impacts on healthcare delivery and is utilised for various applications. Patient-centred services are a special kind of health information technology and are designed to cater to patients' needs. They manage personal medical information and utilise such information to offer personalised, advantageous services as well as information for patients. Due to the sensitivity of medical information and the gravity of possible consequences, if medical information falls into the wrong hands, patient-centred services need to employ security measures to ensure the privacy of patients. The German Nationwide Health Information Technology Infrastructure (HTI), which is currently being established, could serve as a fit and proper foundation for securely offering patient-centred services. In this paper, we illustrate the past developments and current status of the HTI introduction with a focus on security aspects related to patient-centred services. We depict how security features of the HTI can be applied to improve secure provision of patient-centred services. Furthermore, we present additional security measures that should be implemented by providers of patient-centred services.