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- Creators: Barrett, The Honors College
Description
The purpose of this project is to develop a risk assessment tool for the University of California, Riverside (UCR). UCR is health enterprise that manages operations under an environment of innate and uncontrollable risks. Therefore, a risk assessment tool is highly advisable under California State Laws and federal laws. In the case of overlapping laws, federal law will always prevail unless State law explicitly states otherwise. California Health Information Privacy Manual states that California must follow numerous state guidelines and a federal set of guidelines called HIPAA (Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act of 1996). HIPAA is put in place to protect and serve as an organizational tool to develop a stronger and more secure infrastructure of security measures within healthcare enterprises. Under HIPAA is a Security and Privacy Rule that was implemented by The U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) and will serve as the basis for the risk assessment tool I developed. The Security and Privacy Rule's main goal is to set a national standard of how electronic protected health information (ePHI) will be appropriately used and disclosed by organizations subject to this rule, also known covered entities. Covered entities include health plans, health care providers and health care clearinghouses unless specifically stated otherwise. Permitted uses and disclosures of PHI or ePHI are outlined in detail and covered entities are expected to follow all aspects of it that pertain to their role within a healthcare system. Under HHS, the Office of Civil Rights (OCR) strictly enforces the Security and Privacy Rules and can issue civil money penalties and/or other major consequences making this a sizable and critical issue in healthcare environments. Each risk and impact must be assessed to determine an overall risk score. This score will then determine what risks need to be immediately addressed and which risks are most critical to UCR. To do this, potential impacts were determined for each section. The impact score can be decided by using a chart that will be discussed in the development section. The likeliness of the risk can be determined by a UCR professional via the provided chart and an overall risk score can be assigned. From here, an action plan can be set and carried out to eliminate possible hazards and imminent risks. Once a Risk Assessment tool is developed, potential risks can be indentified and dealt with appropriately in regard to level of impact and the likelihood of the risk occurring. By reducing risk, a healthcare enterprise can gain greater financial stability, decrease loss and protect vital information that is critical to the success organization.
ContributorsAustin, Hannah N. (Author) / Riley, William (Thesis director) / Hackman, Paul (Committee member) / School of Molecular Sciences (Contributor) / W.P. Carey School of Business (Contributor) / Barrett, The Honors College (Contributor)
Created2018-05
Description
Human health risk assessment is the process by which regulatory agencies estimate the potential for adverse health outcomes as a result of exposure to contaminated food, water, or environmental conditions (US EPA, 2014). However, the risk assessment process typically does not require inputs to be culturally sensitive to the groups facing the potential health outcomes, and the guidelines suggest little emphasis on food security or food sovereignty, concepts which highlight the importance of access to healthy and culturally appropriate foods. This thesis outlines the theoretical concepts of food and environmental justice, framing them in the context of application to land based, rural communities such as Native American groups. This is significant due to the historically disproportionate contamination of Native lands by hazardous waste or other toxins. Three noteworthy case study examples featuring elements of oral exposure pathways to environmental contamination will be outlined and analyzed to articulate how, by incorporating locally-grounded knowledge, a risk assessment could uncover more accurate information, leading to more appropriate and effective mitigation techniques that uphold food and environmental justice principles. Finally, the trade offs between the expansion of local knowledge and the limitations on cultural consumption are discussed, with the conclusion that supports balancing these trade offs through locally grounded, community-driven assessment and mitigation of contamination.
ContributorsDineen, Lillian K (Author) / BurnSilver, Shauna (Thesis director) / Jehn, Megan (Committee member) / Gonzales, Melissa (Committee member) / School of Life Sciences (Contributor) / School of Human Evolution & Social Change (Contributor) / Barrett, The Honors College (Contributor)
Created2019-12