A lightweight security model for ensuring patient privacy and confidentiality in telehealth applications

Abstract

Telehealth, a cornerstone of Healthcare 4.0 has widespread adoption owing to its convenience and efficiency. However, the secure transmission of patient records over the Internet and Cloud services remains a paramount concern. This study endeavors to design an enhanced security model that guarantees the privacy and confidentiality of patient electronic health records in telehealth applications. The proposed model employs a lightweight encryption algorithm to generate an access token that strictly regulates data access exclusively to the patient's department. Leveraging the patient's unique ID for encryption and decryption processes, the model ensures the secure handling of sensitive information. Robust data privacy measures are implemented through a random key generator utilizing the patient's ECG signal for secure key generation. Test results underscore the efficacy of the proposed security model in limiting access to patient-related data within the designated department. Furthermore, the model employs an efficient encryption algorithm, resulting in a 0.2% increase in generation rate compared to previous models, while reducing CPU usage by 23.16%. These enhancements significantly bolster the reliability and efficiency of the security model, providing robust safeguards for patient electronic health records' privacy and confidentiality during transmission across diverse telehealth applications. This study makes a substantial contribution to healthcare by addressing critical concerns surrounding patient privacy and confidentiality. The designed security model stands poised for seamless integration into various telehealth applications, offering a steadfast solution for data privacy and confidentiality concerns.