The Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act (HIPAA) applies to healthcare providers health plans, healthcare clearinghouses, and their business associates. HIPAA has important privacy and security provisions that restrict the uses and disclosures of healthcare data – termed protected health information (PHI) – and require PHI to be safeguarded at all times. HIPAA requires covered entities to implement policies and procedures to ensure the privacy and security of PHI and for all staff members to be provided with training on the HIPAA Rules.
Many healthcare data breaches result from mistakes by employees who are unaware of their responsibilities under HIPAA, but these are among the easiest data breaches to prevent. HIPAA-covered entities that provide training to members of their workforce can greatly reduce the risk of accidental HIPAA violations. HIPAA also requires security awareness training to be provided to healthcare employees to reduce the risk of PHI compromises. Security awareness training should teach security best practices and make healthcare employees aware of common cyber threats commonly encountered online, in emails, and in other forms of healthcare communications. Healthcare organizations that provide security awareness training can greatly reduce employees’ susceptibility to cyber threats.
ComplianceJunction is a HIPAA training company whose courses have been used by more than 1,000 healthcare organizations and universities in the United States to help raise awareness of the HIPAA Rules, ensure employees know how to handle PHI, teach them about cyber threats and the importance of data security, and meet the HIPAA training requirements. 
In April 2024, Compliance Junction’s HIPAA Training for Organizations training course was approved by the Society of Corporate Compliance and Ethics (SCCE) and the training course has now been approved by the American Health Information Management Association (AHIMA), the the leading voice and authority in health information management in the United States.
The approval means healthcare professionals who complete the training course can claim up to 2.0 Continuing Education Credits (CEUs), which are important for maintaining certifications in the healthcare sector. The approval means that healthcare organizations can easily incentivize their employees to complete the training while simultaneously ensuring that they meet the training requirements of HIPAA.
“Several of our customers requested ComplianceJunction obtain AHIMA approval for the training course to allow their employees to earn CEUs,” said ComplianceJunction’s Ryan Coyne. “We are delighted to announce that the training course has now been approved by AHIMA. The approval confirms that ComplianceJunction is committed to providing high-quality training that meets the educational training needs of healthcare employees and helps their employers maintain compliance with the HIPAA Rules.”
The training course consists of 26 modules that cover core elements of compliance, and extended modules to broaden employees’ knowledge of the HIPAA Rules and improve awareness of cyber threats. The training course is comprehensive and easily customizable to meet the needs of healthcare organizations and different classes of employees. “ComplianceJunction has been so helpful in implementing a HIPAA training program for all our staff. As business owners, we can track our employee participation and progress in the training,” said Kara Lacey, LMFT, Co-Founder & Therapist at River Wards Wellness Collective. “We are grateful for the collaboration in tailoring the training and the opportunity to continue to work with ComplianceJunction as our training provider.”
