HIPAA Compliance Migration
The Problem
Our large health insurance client's web-based provider system allows providers and facilities to track their claims, determine the member eligibility for procedures / claims, and to research referral information.
HIPAA-compliance requires the support of a standard set of codes and guidelines defined by the U.S. government. The government instituted these guidelines in an effort to standardize the operations of health care provider systems nationwide. Stiff fines were to be levied on any U.S. health care providers who did not achieve compliance by the government-defined deadline dates.
Our client requested that Jonah initially lead a requirements gathering process, and further participate in the planning and build phases of all software components.
Our Responsibilities
The Solution
Jonah recommended a four-week discovery / design phase, followed by a quick launch into a 3-month build comprising the first phase of HIPAA compliance. The timeline required a concerted effort at the outset of the project, and a quick ramp-up by developers. We fulfilled our responsibilities completely, and delivered on time for each milestone.
- Jonah deployed a senior Business Analyst and a Technical Architect to lead the requirements gathering process. A system inventory and upgrade strategy were formally notated in a business requirements document and a proposed technical design for the software components to be introduced.
- A number of teams from many different disciplines took part in this process. Jonah was responsible for managing the communication throughout the joint team, which consisted of Project Managers, Systems and Database Administrators, Team Leads, Web Developers, and HIPAA experts from our client's team. Jonah attend weekly status meetings and provided status reports. Due to the amount of communication required at this stage, all work was performed onsite at the client location.
- Our Architect prototyped screens, designed HIPAA code translation components, documented several possible technical approaches to meet HIPAA compliance standards, and communicated the chosen directions to the joint development team on an ongoing basis. Our PM selected a team that could readily meet the tight deadlines associated with the project.
Technologies
- Visual Age for Java Development Environment
- Websphere application server
- JDBC
- Servlet/JSP based interface
- Stingray screen-scraping API
- LDAP
- HTTP, Javascript, SSL
- DB2 mainframe translation database
Unique Challenges, Solved.
- An efficient mix of on-site work and remote development appropriate to the client's needs was proposed and implemented. Remote software development was managed through a VPN connection between the Jonah's and our client's offices, and the use of local and remote repositories.
- Jonah managed a diverse team of individual stakeholders, fielding many inquiries and providing ongoing status to all of the subteams involved. As a result, teams worked efficiently and accomplished all of their joint goals.
- Jonah delivered the discovery documents, the project plan, software components, and unit tests for the newly HIPAA compliant system on time and significantly under budget.
- Questions? Ready to move your project forward? We'd be happy to discuss a solution for your needs. Contact Us to find out more.
