Enhancing Cybersecurity Competencies in Healthcare: An Interdisciplinary Approach to Patient Safety and Data Integrity

With the rapid digitization of healthcare, the sector has become a prime target for cyber-attacks, threatening patient safety, availability of clinical systems, and data confidentiality and integrity. Nurses' direct interaction with patients makes them critical in identifying and mitigating risks associated with ransomware. Their awareness and proactive engagement are essential to enhancing patient safety and maintaining the overall integrity of healthcare operations. This paper justifies the need for nurse training in cybersecurity. It presents a syllabus for “Cybersecurity for Health Professionals,” an innovative course designed to equip healthcare workers, primarily nurses, with essential cybersecurity knowledge and skills. This course can be delivered in several forms, as discussed in the paper.