It’s common for executives in small and mid-sized healthcare organizations to be tasked with security responsibilities on top of everything else they already manage. Without a CISO, someone has to do it. But for leaders without technical backgrounds, this second job is often overwhelming. 

The good news is that you don’t need to become a security expert overnight. What you do need is a clear understanding of what matters most in your environment and a practical way to think about the choices before you.

These are the considerations I always walk through with leaders in this position.

1. Understand Your Data

You have to understand what you’re trying to protect before anything else. That sounds simple, but it’s the piece most people skip. In healthcare, you have a lot of sensitive information moving among systems and workflows and knowing what’s important helps you set priorities.

Take the time to identify where your sensitive data actually lives, what systems are tied to patient care, and which parts of your environment would cause the most disruption if something went wrong. When you understand your business and your data, you can avoid buying tools that don’t solve your real problems.

2. Get the Basics Down

It’s easy to get caught up in the newest tools vendors are talking about. But if you’re just getting started, the best thing you can do is focus on the basics. I call this the “blocking and tackling” of security — endpoint detection and response, active email defense, identity protection and monitoring, employee security education, and data loss prevention to keep your systems secure.

I hear from many people who are worried about advanced AI attacks but still don’t have multi-factor authentication enabled for their users. You don’t need the fancy stuff until the basics are covered because without a good foundation, your security tower will crumble. 

3. Work With the Right Security Partner

Not every security partner or vendor will take the time to learn how your environment works before they start pushing products. You want a partner who wants to understand your business before presenting solutions. If they start rattling off a technology stack without learning anything about your business, that’s a red flag.

Find a partner who actually tries to understand who you are and what you need. A good vendor should help simplify your security journey, not add to the noise with one-size-fits-all solutions.

4. Focus on Resilience

It’s not really a question of if your systems will get hacked anymore, but when — and how it’ll impact your patients.

That’s why I always emphasize resilience. If a ransomware incident or system outage happens, can your clinicians still work? Can you maintain patient safety? Addressing these questions is just as important as preventing attacks in the first place.

5. Know Your PHI Footprint

Healthcare leaders tend to underestimate how many places PHI can end up. It moves through email, shared folders, chat tools, and older systems that haven’t been updated in years. Having strong access controls, proper encryption, and data loss prevention (DLP) across those platforms is a must for preventing accidental leaks or data theft.

A Zero Trust approach can also help here by segmenting your systems at a more granular level instead of relying on generic controls. That kind of segmentation makes it much harder for an attacker to move around and reduces the impact if PHI is exposed.

6. Strengthen Your Data Governance

Data governance is one of the hardest parts of security, but it’s also one of the most important. This means encrypting data at rest and in transit, implementing DLP, categorizing your data, and monitoring usage.

Understanding and categorizing data can be a big challenge, especially for healthcare providers. Say you have 10 years of patient records that were never labeled properly, and nobody has the time to go back and look at all of it. Newer tools can help with labeling and classifying here, but the truth is that proper data governance is what stops PHI from accidentally ending up in a Zoom chat.

7. Use AI With Guardrails

A lot of people are excited about AI, and for good reason. But if your access controls or data governance aren’t in good shape, AI will amplify those problems.

For example, if a user still has access to departments they used to work in and then uses an AI tool to analyze “their” data, the tool could end up using information from locations that person should no longer have access to. This is an example where user management and good data governance really matter. AI isn’t a threat on its own, but it can exacerbate existing issues if they aren’t addressed.

Stay Ahead of Healthcare Security Risks

Leaders who’ve suddenly taken on security responsibilities often don’t know where to begin. If you understand your business, know where your data lives, and get the basics in place, you’re already heading in the right direction. From there, it becomes a matter of choosing the right partners, improving resilience, and tightening data governance so you can take advantage of new technology safely.

If you’re not sure where to start or want help building a plan that actually fits your healthcare environment, my team at GuideIT can help. We bring the right tools, hands-on support, and continuous monitoring needed to keep your systems protected and compliant without adding more work to your already stretched staff. Schedule a free consultation today.