The state of practice about security in telemedicine systems in Chile: An exploratory study

This repository contains the instrument used in our research as well as the validation process. The documents are available in both English and Spanish. This study was designed and executed by the following researchers: Gastón Márquez (University of Bio Bio - [email protected]) Michelle Pacheco (University of Bio Bio) Priscilla Vergara (CENS) Felix Liberona (CENS) May Chomalí (CENS) Eric Rojas (CENS) For additional information about this study, don't hesitate to contact Gastón Márquez. Abstract Background: Ensuring security in telemedicine systems is crucial to the digital evolution of the healthcare industry. Telemedicine includes various forms such as teleconsultation, telehealth, and remote patient monitoring, all of which rely on digital platforms, secure communication networks, and internet-connected devices. Although telemedicine systems have made significant progress in adhering to information security standards and regulations, there is a lack of comprehensive studies that practically assess which aspects of information security these systems are effectively managing and which they are not in the Chilean context. Objective: This study aims to explore the levels of success when addressing security characterized by confidentiality, availability, and integrity in telemedicine systems in Chile. Methods: We examined the data gathered from a tool created to evaluate the quality of telemedicine systems in Chile. Over a span of six years, we assessed the success levels of 25 telemedicine systems from different companies and engaged in a thorough discussion on how these companies manage the information security sub-characteristics within their telemedicine systems. Results: The findings reveal that 52% of telemedicine systems employ cryptographic techniques to ensure confidentiality. Conversely, 44% of these systems lack effective methodologies for adapting to, recovering from, and overcoming security-related challenges. Telemedicine systems consistently integrate fault tolerance mechanisms to prevent disruptions to medical services resulting from system failures. The emphasis on data integrity varies among telemedicine companies; some regard it as a critical attribute, while others do not consider it a significant priority. Conclusions: This study provides a comprehensive analysis of the priorities and strategies implemented by telemedicine companies to address issues relating to information security. Furthermore, it is observed that telemedicine companies typically prioritise security over usability.