How to Train Your Team on HIPAA-Compliant Email Communication

Email is one of the most common communication tools in healthcare, but it’s also one of the biggest security risks. A simple mistake, like sending patient information through an unsecured email or clicking on a phishing link, can result in a HIPAA violation, a data breach, loss of patient trust and significant financial penalties.

In fact, 85% of data breaches in healthcare organizations are caused by human error. That means the greatest cybersecurity threat isn’t just hackers or sophisticated malware–it’s untrained or unaware employees. The good news? With the right training, policies, and secure email practices in place, these risks are entirely preventable.

Quick Links

• Understanding HIPAA Requirements for Email
• Common Mistakes in HIPAA-Compliant Email Communication
• 5 Steps to Train Your Team on HIPAA-Compliant Email

Understanding HIPAA Requirements for Email

Email is an essential communication tool in modern healthcare, but it's also a potential point of exposure for sensitive patient data. Under the Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act (HIPAA), any electronic communication that contains protected health information (PHI) must meet specific security requirements to prevent unauthorized access, disclosure, or loss.

HIPAA doesn’t prohibit email communication, but it does require safeguards. These include technical measures like end-to-end encryption to secure the contents of an email during transmission. Without encryption, even a well-intentioned email could be intercepted or accessed by unintended recipients, resulting in a violation. HIPAA also requires access controls, audit trails, and data integrity protections, meaning only authorized personnel should be able to send or access emails containing PHI, and those communications must be tracked.

Another critical HIPAA requirement is patient consent. If your practice plans to email patients about their care or share sensitive information, you must first obtain their written permission. Even with consent, it’s still your responsibility to make patients aware of the risks of using email and ensure your communication methods are as secure as possible. It builds trust and confidence with your patients when they know you’re taking steps to keep their information safe.

But, compliance goes beyond just having the right tools. Rather, it’s critical that healthcare practices implement the right processes and training to maintain compliance. Staff members should be well-versed in email policies, understand what qualifies as PHI, and know when and how to use secure messaging platforms. With HIPAA-compliant systems and informed users, email can be both efficient and secure.

Common Mistakes in HIPAA-Compliant Email Communication

Even with all of the right procedures and tools in place, healthcare teams can unknowingly violate HIPAA regulations when using email. Understanding where things commonly go wrong is the first step to minimizing risk and protecting patient data.

1. Sending PHI Through Unencrypted Email: One of the most frequent mistakes is sending emails that contain protected health information without proper encryption. Standard email services don’t offer the security required by HIPAA, meaning any PHI sent this way, whether it’s a lab result, diagnosis, or even an appointment reminder with too much detail, could be exposed during transmission.
2. Using Personal or Unsecured Devices: Checking or sending patient-related emails from a personal phone, tablet, or laptop may seem harmless, but it can compromise security if those devices lack encryption, antivirus protection, or secure login credentials. HIPAA requires that devices used to access PHI have appropriate safeguards in place.
3. Failing to Verify Recipients: It’s easy to mistype an email address or select the wrong contact from a list, especially in a busy practice. But one incorrect recipient can lead to an unauthorized disclosure of PHI. Without verification steps in place, emails may end up in the wrong inbox, breaching patient confidentiality.
4. Over-sharing Information in the Email Body or Subject Line: Even with encryption in place, including detailed PHI in the subject line of an email is a common mistake. Subject lines can often be previewed on locked screens or unencrypted platforms. Similarly, putting too much personal or medical information in the body of a non-secure message increases exposure risk.
5. Not Logging or Auditing Email Activity: HIPAA requires healthcare practices to be able to track who accessed or sent patient information and when. Practices that don’t log email activity or retain records as part of their audit trail may struggle to prove compliance if an incident occurs.
6. Assuming Consent Covers Everything: Some practices mistakenly believe that once a patient signs a general consent form, any kind of email communication is fair game. In reality, HIPAA requires specific, informed consent when emailing PHI, especially if secure systems are not used. Consent must be documented, and patients should be made aware of the potential risks.

Missteps like these can be costly–both in terms of financial penalties and loss of trust. Fortunately, many of these risks are preventable with the right systems and awareness in place.

5 Steps to Train Your Team on HIPAA-Compliant Email

Building a culture of compliance starts with equipping your team with the tools, knowledge, and policies they need to send email safely and securely. Here are five essential steps for training staff on HIPAA-compliant email:

1. Develop a Clear HIPAA Email Policy

A strong HIPAA email policy is the foundation of secure communication in any healthcare practice. This policy should clearly define what types of information can and cannot be sent via email and how to obtain and document patient consent for email communications. It should also outline the specific email platforms and security measures approved for use, ensuring that all staff members understand which tools comply with HIPAA regulations. Without a clear policy, employees may unknowingly send sensitive data through unsecured channels, putting patient privacy at risk.

Beyond just creating a policy, it’s essential to make it easily accessible and ensure that every staff member understands their responsibilities. Consider supplementing it with quick-reference guides or checklists that help staff follow best practices in their daily workflow. A well-documented and consistently reinforced policy removes uncertainty, enabling healthcare teams to use email safely while protecting patient information.

2. Conduct Regular Training Sessions

HIPAA training shouldn’t be a one-time event. Schedule regular sessions, at least annually or more frequently as needed, to keep staff informed about your email policies, HIPAA requirements, and any new tools or procedures. These sessions can be short and focused, using real-world examples or case studies to keep the content relevant and actionable.

For ongoing training, be sure to provide staff with resources that they can easily access and refer back to as needed. This may be training videos, case studies, or practice exercises to keep concepts fresh in their minds. 

3. Teach Staff How to Identify & Avoid Cyber Threats 

Even the most secure email system can be compromised by a single click. Cybercriminals often use email as the primary entry point, crafting phishing messages that appear legitimate and sometimes mimic trusted colleagues, vendors, or even government agencies. These emails may contain malicious links, infected attachments, or urgent requests designed to trick users into sharing sensitive information. It only takes one misstep to expose your entire network to a breach. That’s why it's critical that staff understand the common tactics attackers use and feel empowered to act cautiously, rather than reactively.

Additionally, and perhaps most importantly, make reporting easy and judgment-free. When your team is confident in spotting and escalating questionable emails, they become an active line of defense against some of the most common threats facing healthcare organizations today.

4. Monitor Compliance & Reinforce Best Practices

Once training is in place, keep the momentum going with ongoing monitoring and support. Periodically review email activity for red flags, conduct internal audits, and provide one-on-one coaching when needed. Consider sharing quick tips or reminders regularly, whether through email, team huddles, or visual aids in shared spaces, to keep best practices top of mind.

5. Implement Secure Email Solutions

Training is most effective when paired with the right technology. Give staff access to a HIPAA-compliant email platform that makes it easy to send secure messages, encrypt PHI, and maintain audit logs. Ensure your team is trained on how to use these tools effectively, including how to initiate encrypted emails, set up secure portals, and verify patient email addresses.

Training your team to use email in a HIPAA-compliant way isn’t just about meeting regulatory requirements–it’s about protecting your patients, your staff, and the reputation of your practice. Every email sent without proper safeguards is a potential risk, but with the right training and technology in place, your team can communicate confidently while keeping sensitive patient data secure.

That’s where iCoreExchange comes in. As a fully HIPAA-compliant email solution, iCoreExchange by iCoreConnect provides end-to-end encryption, secure messaging, and seamless integration into your practice’s workflow, ensuring that PHI stays protected at all times. Plus, with audit-ready logs and built-in safeguards, you can maintain compliance without disrupting day-to-day operations.

Don’t leave your practice vulnerable to costly mistakes or security breaches. Book a demo today with the experts at iCoreConnect to see how iCoreExchange can help your team streamline communication while staying fully HIPAA compliant.