The rise of remote work and impact of COVID-19 on healthcare staffing have created new data vulnerabilities. Employees complete work on the go, while in line for groceries, commuting, or getting coffee. When people are short on time, they make mistakes. An administrator listening to voicemails on speakerphone in public, for instance, could put client health data at risk. That potential HIPAA violation led Henderson Behavioral Health’s CIO Tony Cox to search for a solution. “I’m doing the best I can to prevent any type of data loss,” Cox shared. He was one of the first customers to implement Paubox’s voicemail transcription bot and provided a customer story for our website last month.
Audio files are one of the many types of data covered by HIPAA. Many medical practices configure voicemail systems to send copies of messages to their email via voice over IP (VoIP). These files are likely to contain PHI and are encrypted at rest. What happens if employees listen to voicemail attachments outside of the workplace? With the rise of remote work, this is more likely than ever to occur.
Mr. Cox understands his responsibility to do everything he can to keep patient data secure. “In our busy work environments, we’re listening to [voicemail], we’re clicking on things, and we may not have the phone up to our ear.” Smartphones have enabled us to complete work away from our desks, but they’ve also opened us up liability. Utilizing Paubox’ voicemail transcription, Henderson staff are able to quickly read the voicemails, closing the gap on exposure.
As we discussed the genesis of the voicemail project, Tony Cox pointed out that the idea arose from a Thursday evening Zoom Social Mixer. Paubox hosts these mixers monthly and finds they are an excellent source of customer feedback. “Within a couple of days, I think Monday or Tuesday, we had a little sample!” One of the reasons Paubox was able to move so quickly is that we host Henderson’s MX record. The recorded voice message is still included in the email received by staff. “You can always refer back to it and listen to it when you’re in a more private space,” Cox said.
Beyond the benefit of preventing data breaches, Mr. Cox appreciates the convenience voicemail transcription offers his team. “When I’m sitting in a meeting, I can’t listen to [voicemail] but I can read an email.” As CIO, Cox sits in many meetings, and is keenly aware he may miss an important call. Voicemail transcription has freed him of that concern. Whether Henderson team members are in meetings or commuting, they can get through their voicemail in seconds.
Saving time saves money. In June 2022, the Henderson team had over 700 minutes of voicemail. The ability to read these messages, weed out the unimportant, and prioritize the urgent saved them over 400 hours of administrative work company wide. This translates into nearly $10,000 in saved wages. How much money can voicemail transcription save your organization?