The Playbook for Healthcare Security Compliance
How regulated healthcare companies can manage compliance (SOC 2, HIPAA, etc.) while avoiding the mistakes that delay audits and drain time and resources.
The Compliance Traps that Stall Healthcare Companies
Healthcare companies today are under pressure to prove HIPAA, SOC 2, or ISO 27001 compliance.
Most teams are told to comply - without a roadmap of how to approach cybersecurity or which GRC tools to use.
Whether you're protecting PHI, securing APIs, or partnering with hospitals, the stakes are high—and getting higher.
This guide show healthcare leaders how to avoid common cybersecurity pitfalls and confidently build a compliant security program.
Reactive Audit Preparation
Without a repeatable process, teams scramble every year to collect evidence, prove policies, and “look” compliant in time for the audit.
Lack of Internal Expertise
Your team knows healthcare - but not how to build a scalable ISMS (Information Security Management System) or map controls across frameworks.
Fragmented Tools & Spreadsheets
Compliance gets buried across policies, risk registers, email threads, and shared drives—none of which talk to each other.
6 Lessons Healthcare Teams Learn The Hard Way
Documenting ≠ Demonstrating
You can’t just upload policies—you need to prove it’s been read, acknowledged, and followed.
How to stay audit-ready
Compliance Isn’t a One-Time Project
It’s a demonstration of an ongoing security program that requires ownership and updates.
How to stay audit-ready
Frameworks Overlap—If You Let Them
You’re wasting time with redundant work unless your system maps controls across frameworks like HIPAA and SOC 2.
Steps to crosswalk frameworks
Auditors Expect Structure
Audit readiness isn’t about perfection—it’s about demonstrating evidence in a clear, centralized way.
How to structure your compliance
Spreadsheets Break Down at Scale
What works with 5 employees doesn’t work with 50. Or 150. Or vendors. Or auditors.
How to replace spreadsheets
You Need More Than a GRC Tool
Checklists and dashboards are great - but without guidance, they still leave you guessing.
Stop the compliance guesswork
The Roadmap to Audit Readiness
Whether your Security Management System is established or you're just getting started, this roadmap is your step-by-step guide to an always audit-ready posture.
Step 1:
Set Up Your Security
Align teams around compliance
Assign roles and accountability
Consolidate existing documentation
Step 2:
Start Smart. Align Early
Align on goals and timeline
Set expectations for all departments
Schedule check-ins and milestones
Step 3:
Identify What You Have
List users, assets, orgs, documents
Collect data from all departments
Confirm completion with owners
Step 4:
Spot What Could Go Wrong
Complete formal risk analysis
Add risks to your risk register
Generate a risk assessment report
Step 5:
Discover What’s Missing
Compare current state vs. requirements
Identify all compliance gaps
Produce Gap Assessment Report
Step 6:
Create Your Action Plan
Prioritize and assign remediation tasks
Build timeline and accountability
Document in a Remediation Plan
Step 7:
Put Plan Into Action
Close gaps with documented proof
Implement training and controls
Align practices with policies
Step 8:
Test Before You’re Tested
Conduct a mock internal audit
Review evidence and gaps
Document findings and fixes
Step 9:
Pass With Confidence
Engage with auditor and platform
Provide evidence from system
Address any final comments quickly
Step 10:
Close The Loop. Stay Secure
Resolve audit findings
Monitor risks, assets, and evidence
Refresh training and policies
Step 11:
Seal the Audit. Set the Pace
Accept final audit deliverables
Conduct an introspective
Set a compliance monitoring plan
Step 12:
Strengthen & Scale
Drive continuous ISMS improvements
Follow documented processes
Set the stage for ongoing readiness
What leading healthcare teams do differently
- Centralize Everything
No more scattered policies, training logs, or evidence records - Audit Prep Is Ongoing
Each process, task, and training should naturally generate evidence - Enable Cross-Team Accountability
Task assignments, reminders, and version tracking across stakeholders - Invite Auditors, Don’t Chase Them
Enable secure auditor access to view only what’s approved and relevant - Lean on Compliance Experts
Work with experts who’ve actually guided healthcare companies through audits
What We Hear Most Often...
Kevin Brown
ISO & Director of Professional Services
What’s the difference between HIPAA and HITRUST?
HIPAA is a US law establishing baseline requirements for protecting sensitive patient health information, while HITRUST is a framework that provides a more comprehensive and scalable approach to security and compliance, including HIPAA, but also other standards.
In essence, HIPAA sets the legal foundation, and HITRUST offers a detailed framework and certification process to help organizations meet and demonstrate compliance.
What tools or services can help healthcare providers with compliance?
Rather than relying on spreadsheets or shared drives, healthcare companies can use a GRC tool to track and manage policies, risk assessments, training, access controls, and vendor management. Many platforms also include workflows that align with specific frameworks
Compliance-as-a-Service (CaaS) solutions provide further guidance to help smaller, less experienced teams save time, reduce human error, and prepare for audits.