IT teams that support healthcare environments face unique challenges. They need to support distributed clinics, telehealth systems, users, and endpoints while protecting sensitive data and supporting HIPAA compliance efforts.
Despite the complexity, IT teams must be able to provide remote support quickly enough to resolve disruptions before they can cause any issues, while maintaining data security. So how do they strike that balance?
With that in mind, let’s take a look at how healthcare IT teams can make remote support swift and secure, while maintaining IT compliance and audit-readiness.
What Does Secure, Compliant Remote Support Mean in Healthcare?
In healthcare, remote support has very specific needs. Secure remote support should enable IT staff to access and troubleshoot systems remotely while enforcing strong security controls, including least-privilege access, session accountability, and repeatable evidence to support audit readiness.
It’s also important to note the different kinds of remote access and support. While there is overlap between remote access and remote support, there are key differences in how they’re used, as well as a distinction between attended and unattended support:
Remote access: Users can connect to their work systems or applications from another location and remote device. This is typically limited to individual users accessing their workstations and work computers while working remotely.
Remote support: IT technicians securely connect to a user’s device, workstation, server, or endpoint to troubleshoot an issue.
Unattended support: Authorized IT staff can connect to approved managed systems when the end user is unavailable, based on permissions configured in advance.
Attended support: A user-approved support session in which the end user is present to grant access.
Why Healthcare Remote Support Requires Stronger Controls
So, what makes remote support security needs so strong in healthcare? There are several factors that increase the need for robust cybersecurity and access controls, due to the sensitive data healthcare environments handle.
This includes:
1. Healthcare Environments Have More Sensitive Access Points
In healthcare, remote support sessions involve devices connected to sensitive systems, such as EHR systems, billing, patient intake tools, or clinical applications. These contain personal data with strict security requirements, and even when a technician is just fixing a device issue, the remote session can create access to it.
2. IT Teams Often Support Multiple Locations and Device Types
Your typical medical facility has a large staff and an equally large endpoint environment. IT teams must support different hospitals and clinics, remote staff, administrative teams, remote care environments, and more, which requires robust, reliable remote support capabilities. Basic remote access tools often lack the controls, logging, and administrative flexibility healthcare IT teams need to support varied locations, users, and devices consistently.
3. Compliance Depends on Repeatable Process and Evidence
IT compliance requires more than just using secure tools; you also need to document and demonstrate your security controls. This means maintaining documentation for policies and access logs, defining roles, regularly reviewing access logs, and maintaining repeatable remote support workflows that demonstrate your security in action.
Best Practices for Secure, Compliant Remote Support in Healthcare
Providing remote support to a healthcare organization can be overwhelming at first glance. The strict security standards, while necessary, may make it seem like secure remote support is inaccessible. However, by following a few best practices, it’s possible to provide secure remote support with HIPAA-compliant remote access software:
1. Require Strong User Authentication
User authentication is one of the most important steps for secure remote access. Accounts should be protected with features like Multi-Factor Authentication (MFA), Single Sign-On (SSO), strong identity controls, and unique accounts for each technician.
Make sure you avoid shared accounts, as those can reduce accountability. Connecting support access to identity systems also makes it easier to manage onboarding/offboarding and role changes, keeping access restricted to authorized users.
2. Use Role-Based Access and Least Privilege
Technicians should be able to easily access the tools and systems they need for their jobs, but nothing more. Using role-based access controls with least privilege principles helps ensure that access remains limited by role, so help desk technicians, system admins, and third-party vendors don’t have the same permissions by default.
Permissions can be limited by factors such as role, group, or support function. It can also help to keep attended and unattended access permissions separate, thus limiting the risk of unauthorized unattended access.
Be sure to regularly review permissions, so no technicians accidentally end up with greater access than they need.
3. Ensure Remote Support Sessions are Encrypted
End-to-end encryption helps protect data in transit, keeping it scrambled and unreadable should anyone try to intercept it. As such, it’s a powerful security tool for remote sessions. In healthcare environments, support may be required over remote networks, branch clinics, home offices, or other locations, so strong encryption is vital to keep those remote sessions secure.
4. Maintain Detailed Session Logs and Audit Trails
Healthcare IT teams should keep clear records of remote support sessions, including who accessed what system, when the session occurred, how long it lasted, and what the technician did. These logs should provide clear records of technicians, endpoints, file transfer activity, support notes, and any administrative actions taken by technicians, to maintain accountability and audit-readiness.
5. Control File Transfer and Clipboard Use
When files are transferred between devices, it can create compliance issues without proper controls in place. A good remote support tool should enable administrators to allow or restrict file transfers, copy/paste, and similar features. These restrictions can also vary by role or support scenario, like other role-based privileges.
6. Secure Unattended Access Carefully
Unattended access is valuable for after-hours maintenance, supporting servers or kiosks, and accessing other systems when users aren’t around. However, it also needs to be tightly managed to prevent unauthorized access when no one is around to stop it.
This means having a list of approved devices with granular technician permissions, secured with identity-based access and Multi-Factor Authentication. Remote session logs should be audited regularly, and permissions should be reviewed frequently to make sure they remain limited to users who need them.
7. Use Attended Support for User-Driven Issues
Attended support is typically sufficient for troubleshooting user workstations, helping remote employees, and similar situations. As such, it should be used when appropriate, rather than relying on unattended access. Attended access sessions can be securely set up with session codes and require user consent, helping protect them against unattended access.
8. Manage Third-Party and Vendor Access Separately
Healthcare organizations often rely on third-party vendors for software, imaging systems, billing tools, and more. In these cases, vendor access should be monitored, limited, and temporary. This includes vendor-specific accounts with limited permissions, time-bound access that’s removed after the task is completed, and workflows for approving additional access. Each session should also be thoroughly logged to maintain accountability.
9. Keep Endpoints Patched and Visible
Secure remote support requires strong endpoint security. This means IT teams should have visibility into operating systems and third-party applications to ensure they’re fully patched, and any vulnerabilities are addressed.
10. Document Remote Support Policies and Review Them Regularly
Maintaining clear policies and documentation is essential. Healthcare organizations should define how remote support is requested, approved, carried out, and logged, with clear guidance and regular reviews.
Policies should include:
Who can initiate support
Who can approve elevated access
When unattended access is allowed
How vendor sessions are handled
Which support actions are logged
How long records are retained for
How exceptions are handled and documented
What to Look for in Remote Support Software for Healthcare
If you’re looking for a remote support solution for a healthcare organization, there are specific features you’ll need to ensure are included. When evaluating remote support software, make sure you find one that includes:
SSO and MFA support to secure account access.
Granular role-based permissions to manage who can access what.
Attended and unattended support options for greater versatility.
Strong encryption to protect data in transit.
Session logging and audit trails to maintain accountability.
Session recording (where appropriate).
File transfer controls for managing how data is handled.
Multi-platform support so IT agents can support a variety of endpoints.
Support for distributed locations.
Endpoint management and patching capabilities to maintain security across remote devices.
ITSM or service desk integrations.
Scalable deployment and centralized administration.
How Splashtop Helps Healthcare IT Teams Support Users and Devices Securely
Fortunately, there are secure remote support tools on the market that can help support HIPAA compliance, such as Splashtop. Splashtop provides secure remote access and support for organizations of all sizes, with strong security features that meet even the strictest security standards. With Splashtop, IT teams can seamlessly access remote devices for troubleshooting and support, while keeping accounts secure and data protected with AES encryption.
1. Secure Remote Support for Distributed Healthcare Teams
Splashtop’s remote support tools help IT teams assist users across devices and locations with secure remote sessions. This includes both attended and unattended access options, with robust permissions and tools for maintaining who can access what.
With Splashtop, IT teams can support remote employees, troubleshoot clinic workstations, support distributed offices, and help users without needing to go on-site. All this is managed from a centralized dashboard, making administration easy.
2. Access Controls and Audit-Ready Session Visibility
Splashtop is built with security in mind and includes a broad array of features to keep accounts and data secure. User accounts are protected with SSO/SAML, while access is managed with granular permissions. Sessions can be logged and recorded where appropriate, helping teams maintain accountability and support access reviews, investigations, and audit readiness.
3. Endpoint Visibility and Patch Management with Splashtop AEM
Splashtop also offers Splashtop AEM (Autonomous Endpoint Management), which can help IT teams strengthen their remote support with automation, visibility, and management tools. Splashtop AEM provides endpoint visibility, real-time automated patch management, CVE-based vulnerability insights, policy-based automation, and more.
All these features help maintain secure endpoints and support proactive IT workflows, with less manual effort. Splashtop AEM provides a clear view of endpoint risks, as well as the automation and patch management IT teams need to address them.
4. Integrated Support Workflows
Splashtop can improve support workflows by integrating with common ITSM and service desk tools, such as ServiceNow, Zendesk, Freshservice, Freshdesk, Salesforce, Autotask PSA, Spiceworks Help Desk, and Microsoft Teams. These integrations help reduce context switching during remote sessions and improve efficiency by bringing remote access right into the ticket and support workflow.
Common Mistakes to Avoid
Once you’ve set up your remote support tools, you’ll want to watch out for some common mistakes. Proper care and vigilance are necessary for maintaining security and IT compliance, so it’s important to know what to avoid.
Common mistakes include:
Using shared technician accounts, which can impact accountability and make it harder to track activity.
Allowing broad, unattended access without review, which can leave sensitive data accessible to unauthorized users.
Treating remote support logs as optional.
Relying on users to install updates manually, rather than automatically deploying updates across endpoints.
Giving vendors persistent access after a task is complete.
Using separate tools without a clear audit trail.
Failing to document support approval and escalation processes.
Reviewing access only after an incident or audit request, rather than regularly.
Healthcare Remote Support Checklist
If you’re implementing remote support for your healthcare organization, you’ll want to take certain steps and implement precautions to help maintain HIPAA compliance and healthcare cybersecurity. Following this handy checklist can help you maintain the high levels of security and control you need to safely work from anywhere:
Require Multi-Factor Authentication for technician access.
Use Single Sign-On where possible.
Assign role-based permissions to manage who can access what.
Separate attended, unattended, admin, and vendor access with distinct roles and permissions.
Enable encryption for all remote sessions.
Record all session activity with automated logging.
Review access regularly.
Establish limits for file transfer permissions.
Consistently patch operating systems and third-party applications.
Maintain up-to-date software and hardware inventory.
Document remote support workflows.
Use ticketing or service desk workflows where possible.
Remove access when users, vendors, or technicians no longer need it.
Secure Healthcare Remote Support with Splashtop
Remote support can help make healthcare organizations more efficient and resolve technical issues from anywhere. However, secure healthcare remote support requires controlled access, documented workflows, visibility across endpoints, and audit-ready evidence, so IT teams can prove they’re meeting their HIPAA obligations.
Splashtop helps healthcare IT teams support users and devices remotely while enforcing strong access controls, secure authentication, and session visibility. This helps strengthen operational consistency across distributed healthcare environments while supporting security and compliance efforts.
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