(Solved): 1. First, we need to get all the details. I would ask the nurse exactly what happened, check if ...

1. First, we need to get all the details. I would ask the nurse exactly what happened, check if the laptop was encrypted and call the podiatrist’s office and cleaning company to see if someone found it. Also need to file a police report to help track it down. Next, I would tell the IT team so they can lock or erase the laptop remotely. The compliance and legal teams need to know so they can decide if this is a HIPAA breach. If patient data was not protected, we may have to tell the patients, report it to the government. To make sure this never happens again, we need better security rules. All staff should be trained in keeping laptops and patient data safe, and all company laptops should have encryption and remote-wipe features. There should also be a rule that laptops must never be left behind in a patient’s home. Finally, we need to follow up by checking with the police, keeping an eye out for security risks, and updating our policies and training to prevent this from happening again. Keeping patient information safe is not just the law, it’s also the right thing to do. 2. Gertrude should get a written warning and need to be trained again on keeping patient info safe. Leaving the laptop behind was a big mistake, but she tried to fix it quickly. Since she acted fast to get the laptop back, she doesn’t need to be fired. She needs a reminder about how important it is to keep patient information safe and how to avoid this in the future. 3. Inside the company, the IT team should know so they can lock or erase the laptop to keep patient info safe as stated before. The compliance and legal teams need to check if this breaks HIPAA rules and decide what to do next. Managers should be told so they can handle the situation and make sure it doesn’t happen again. Gertrude’s boss also needs to know so they can decide if she needs training or discipline. Outside the company, we need to call the police and file a report to help find the missing laptop. If the patient data was not protected, we might have to tell the government (HHS) to follow HIPAA laws. If patients’ personal info is at risk, we must let them know so they can watch for fraud. If a lot of people are affected, we may also need to tell the public. This helps fix the problem and keep patient data safe.