Tampa General Hospital Achieves HITRUST CSF Certification for Systems Implemented to Manage Risk

HITRUST CSF Certification validates that Tampa General Hospital has implemented systems to meet key regulations and protect sensitive information.

Tampa, FL (Jan. 20, 2022) – Tampa General Hospital’s (TGH) strict cyber security measures, which protect the hospital’s patients, team members, and partners, have received national recognition by earning HITRUST CSF® Certification by HITRUST, the Health Information Trust Alliance.

HITRUST CSF® Certification demonstrates that the organization’s electronic medical record systems and infrastructure to protect patient and provider information have met key regulations and industry-defined requirements and are appropriately managing risk.

Tampa General also has been recognized in the information technology arena as one of the Digital Health Most Wired recipients nine consecutive times by the College of Healthcare Information Management Executives (CHIME). TGH is one of only five hospitals in Florida to receive Certified Level 9 (out of 10) recognition in both the Acute and Ambulatory levels from CHIME for 2021.

The HITRUST achievement places Tampa General Hospital in an elite group of organizations worldwide that have earned this certification. It took Tampa General three years to complete the hundreds of supporting requirements in 19 information technology control categories required to meet the rigorous standards of the certification. During this time, Clearwater, Fla.-based Security Compliance Associates performed a HITRUST Validated Assessment and related services to help facilitate the certification and remains a valued cybersecurity partner for TGH.

By including federal and state regulations, standards, and frameworks, and incorporating a risk-based approach, the HITRUST CSF helps organizations address these challenges through a comprehensive and flexible framework of prescriptive and scalable security controls.

“Organizations like ours are under more pressure than ever to meet complex compliance and privacy requirements that include technical and process elements that are included in industry-established frameworks such as HIPAA,” said Peter Rucys, chief information security officer at Tampa General Hospital. “We are pleased to demonstrate to our customers the highest standards for protecting sensitive data and information by achieving HITRUST CSF Certification.”

“The HITRUST CSF Assurance Program is the most rigorous available, consisting of a multitude of quality assurance checks, both automated and manual,” said Bimal Sheth, vice president of Assurance Services at HITRUST. “The fact that Tampa General Hospital has achieved HITRUST CSF Certification attests to the high quality of its information risk management and compliance program.”

ABOUT TAMPA GENERAL HOSPITAL
Tampa General Hospital, a 1,041-bed non-profit academic medical center, is one of the largest hospitals in America and delivers world-class care as the region’s only center for Level l trauma and comprehensive burn care. Tampa General Hospital is the highest-ranked hospital in the market in U.S. News & World Report's 2021-22 Best Hospitals, and one of the top 4 hospitals in Florida, with five specialties ranking among the best programs in the United States. The academic medical center’s commitment to growing and developing its team members is recognized by two prestigious 2021 Forbes magazine rankings – America’s Best Employers by State, third out of 100 Florida companies and first among health care and social organizations and 13^th nationally in America’s Best Employers for Women. Tampa General is the safety net hospital for the region, caring for everyone regardless of their ability to pay, and in fiscal 2020 provided a net community benefit worth more than $182.5 million in the form of health care for underinsured patients, community education and financial support to community health organizations in Tampa Bay. It is one of the nation’s busiest adult solid organ transplant centers and is the primary teaching hospital for the USF Health Morsani College of Medicine. With five medical helicopters, Tampa General Hospital transports critically injured or ill patients from 23 surrounding counties to receive the advanced care they need. Tampa General houses a nationally accredited comprehensive stroke center and its 32-bed Neuroscience Intensive Care Unit is the largest on the West Coast of Florida. It also is home to the Jennifer Leigh Muma 82-bed Level IV neonatal intensive care unit, and a nationally accredited rehabilitation center. Tampa General Hospital’s footprint includes 17 Tampa General Medical Group Primary Care offices, TGH Family Care Center Kennedy, TGH Brandon Healthplex, TGH Virtual Health and 19 outpatient Radiology Centers. Tampa Bay residents also receive world-class care from the TGH Urgent Care powered by Fast Track network of clinics, and they can even receive home visits in select areas through TGH Urgent Care at Home, powered by Fast Track.  As one of the largest hospitals in the country, Tampa General Hospital is first in Florida to partner with GE Healthcare and open a clinical command center that uses artificial intelligence and predictive analytics to improve and better coordinate patient care at a lower cost.  For more information, go to www.tgh.org.