Large Northeast Health System

Use Case Study 1: Strengthening Privacy and Security in a Large Northeast Health System

Hospital System: Major integrated healthcare network in the Northeastern U.S.
Facility Type: Academic medical center with nearly 1,000 beds
Challenge: Persistent concerns about patient privacy, inconsistent visitor screening, and lack of centralized access control

Problem Overview

A flagship academic hospital within a large Northeast health system was facing serious challenges related to visitor management:

• Visitors were entering restricted areas such as maternity, oncology, and intensive care units without proper clearance
• Paper logbooks and unverified visitor badges led to privacy breaches and noncompliance risks
• Frontline staff lacked real-time tools to enforce evolving visitor policies

FAST-PASS Implementation

The hospital deployed the FAST-PASS Visitor Management System at all public entry points, integrating it with its internal HL7 patient database and access protocols.

Key Benefits

• HIPAA Compliance: Visitor access is automatically restricted for patients with privacy requests (e.g., confidential status), helping prevent unauthorized disclosures of PHI
• Real-Time Screening: Government-issued IDs are scanned, logged, and checked against internal watchlists to block flagged individuals
• Comprehensive Audit Trails: FAST-PASS tracks all visitor movement, aiding in investigations and compliance audits

Regulatory Impact

• Joint Commission Compliance: The hospital demonstrated compliance with standards such as EC.02.01.01 (safety and security) and RI.01.01.01 (patient rights) by showing data from the FAST-PASS system during its last survey
• Operational Improvements: Unauthorized visits dropped by over 60%, and staff reported improved ability to enforce visitor policies without manual effort