Human and Organizational Factors of Healthcare Data Breaches: The Swiss Cheese Model of Data Breach Causation And Prevention

Over the past few years, concerns related to healthcare data privacy have been mounting since healthcare information has become more digitized, distributed and mobile. However, very little is known about the root cause of data breach incidents; making it difficult for healthcare organizations to establish proper security controls and defenses. Through a systematic review and synthesis of data breaches literature, and using databases of earlier reported healthcare data breaches, the authors re-examine and analyze the causal factors behind healthcare data breaches. The authors then use the Swiss Cheese Model (SCM) to shed light on the technical, organizational and human factors of these breaches. The author's research suggests that incorporating the SCM concepts into the healthcare security policies and procedures can assist healthcare providers in assessing the vulnerabilities and risks associated with the maintenance and transmission of protected health information.