WAIT, WHAT? WE’VE BEEN CYBERATTACKED??

Abstract

Cyberattacks targeting healthcare have been growing throughout the world, with clinical laboratories suffering along with the larger healthcare enterprise when networks are taken down and operations disrupted. Given our overwhelming reliance on laboratory information systems, middleware, interfaces, and other software/automation/technology tools, it is only natural that these attacks now pose a clear and present danger for laboratories and ultimately, the patients they serve.

In this session, participants will gain crucial insights into the evolving landscape of cybersecurity threats facing healthcare organizations and clinical laboratories. The course will discuss how the latest trends in digital pathology and artificial intelligence alter the vulnerability of anatomic pathology laboratories and pathology practices to these threats. Currently, the microscope is probably the most resistant piece of laboratory equipment to cyberattacks, but as this time tested device slowly gets replaced by digital tools, the pathology pipeline itself becomes increasingly vulnerable to disruptions.. While most organizations are prepared for downtimes limited in time and scope, a cyberattack downtime is completely unprecedented in magnitude and requires specialized preparation. Recent events have shown that healthcare organizations and their laboratories are simply not prepared for such extensive disruptions. Attendees will: 1) learn practical strategies to identify and mitigate cybersecurity risks; 2) understand how the use of digital pathology and artificial intelligence changes the landscape for AP practices from a cybersecurity perspective; and 3) learn how to develop comprehensive preparedness plans to manage extended downtimes resulting from cyberattacks. This course is essential for healthcare professionals looking to enhance their knowledge and ensure the resilience of their practices in an ever evolving digital world.

Learning Objectives:

1. Identify the common cybersecurity threats facing healthcare organizations and clinical laboratories today
2. Recognize what the impact of going digital, i.e., using digital pathology and artificial intelligence tools, will have on your AP laboratory and practice now and in the future
3. Understand how to prepare one’s practice/laboratory for an extended downtime due to a cyberattack