A third real-life example are the pervasive Healthcare Information Systems (HIS) and Patient Information Management Systems (PIMS) that form the backbone of any healthcare facility. These are systems that capture all relevant patient demographic, treatment and health-related data in addition to showing the specific costs of treatment and profits as well (McGurkin, Hart, Millinghausen, 2006). In short, these systems form the basic financial structure of a healthcare systems. There are according to one estimate $71B in HIS and PIMS systems installed every year on average globally (Blake, Massey, Bala, Cummings, Zotos, 2010). These systems are the most regulated in terms of compliance as well, with the requirement they be operated to comply with the Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act of 1996 (HIPAA). Every hospital and healthcare facility must comply with HIPAA per federal mandate, which puts the pressure on facilities management to ensure the HIS and PIMS systems and their equivalents are secure, stable from an operations standpoint, and capable of supporting wide variations in access and use.

Ethical Conflicts of Profit Margins vs. Compliance

There is an inherent conflict in managing a healthcare enterprise between ensuring it attains a sufficient profit margin and stays in compliance to HIPAA and many other federal compliance requirements or seeks to cut costs by being just good enough to meet reporting requirements (Lai, 1985). Given how transparent the healthcare industry has become with the growing adoption of social media, there is a bigger cost of just doing enough to get by vs. going to the fullest extent of serving patients however (McGurkin, Hart, Millinghausen, 2006). The greatest ethical responsibility anyone working in a healthcare provider has is to provide a stable, secure and highly reliable facility for the treatment and care of patients. The pull between costs and quality need to always err on the side of the latter; there is no room for just getting by to HIPAA requirements for example (Blake, Massey, Bala, Cummings, Zotos, 2010). Facilities management must work to ensure that the cost targets are attained through process efficiency and the continual integration of new technologies into workflows and programs (McGurkin, Hart, Millinghausen, 2006). When...

The facilities management pleaders have an ethical responsibility first to the patient and the healthcare provider staff to ensure stability, security and reliability of the entire operations of the business. Cost cutting through innovation and efficiency is critical over the long-term however not at the expense of patients.
Securities Strategies for Facilities Management

The development of security strategies and programs needs to begin at the supply chain level and span all the way into the procurement, logistics and monitoring programs within the healthcare facility itself. Concentrating on security by role-level, facilities management teams must provide a secure and stable ER and ICU operating environment, making sure only those needed in these treatment areas have access to them (Thuemmier, Buchanan, Fekri, Lawson, 2009). The use of security to also create a more effective barrier to treatment areas by using biometrics, RFID and other technologies continues to show significant value as well (Thuemmier, Buchanan, Fekri, Lawson, 2009). Ultimately the facilities management teams must plan for contingencies and allow for free movement through a healthcare facility for those in need fo support and services but also protect and harden specific areas to ensure assets and information is also protected as well.