Data retention policy enforcement

Purpose

 1.1. Ensure sensitive health records, treatment notes, and communications are securely retained and deleted as mandated by HIPAA, local laws, and professional guidelines.
 1.2. Automate the process to reduce human error, limit unnecessary data storage, and mitigate compliance risks.
 1.3. Enforce granular retention periods for different document and data types (e.g., patient charts, billing records, communications).

Trigger Conditions

 2.1. Scheduled periodic review based on document or data age (e.g., 7 years post-care).
 2.2. Receipt of patient request for data deletion.
 2.3. Role-based access change, such as a practitioner leaving the business.
 2.4. Trigger via completion of treatment episode or discharge workflow.

Platform Variants

 3.1. Google Workspace (Drive, Sheets, Vault)
  - Feature/Setting: Google Vault retention rules; configure rule: “Auto-delete files labeled ‘Patient/Record/YYYY’ after 7 years.”
 3.2. Microsoft 365 (SharePoint, OneDrive, Purview)
  - Feature/Setting: Compliance policy via Microsoft Purview; set up a data lifecycle policy for medical chart folders.
 3.3. Dropbox Business
  - Feature/Setting: Automated file expiry tagging via Dropbox API’s file properties; schedule deletion scripts with time-based triggers.
 3.4. Box
  - Feature/Setting: Retention policies; configure ‘Healthcare Records’ folder to auto-purge after compliance expiration.
 3.5. AWS S3
  - Feature/Setting: S3 object lifecycle management; set lifecycle policies for automatic deletion after set period.
 3.6. Google Cloud Storage
  - Feature/Setting: Retention policy on buckets; use JSON rule: “Delete objects tagged ‘acupuncture-patient-info’ after 84 months.”
 3.7. Salesforce Health Cloud
  - Feature/Setting: Platform events + Scheduled Flows; auto-remove archived cases after regulatory period.
 3.8. HubSpot CRM
  - Feature/Setting: Workflow automation with custom properties; trigger record purge after custom field ‘Retention End’.
 3.9. Zoho CRM
  - Feature/Setting: Scheduled Function; delete related medical note modules after statutory duration.
 3.10. Airtable
  - Feature/Setting: Airtable Automations; schedule script block to erase old entries in ‘Patient Records’ table.
 3.11. Smartsheet
  - Feature/Setting: Time-based workflows; auto-delete or archive row entries after date field condition met.
 3.12. DocuSign
  - Feature/Setting: DocuSign Connect + API; configure completed envelope deletion per retention rules.
 3.13. PandaDoc
  - Feature/Setting: API webhook; remove or archive completed documents after set period.
 3.14. Clio
  - Feature/Setting: Automation within Clio Manage; trigger file closure and purge after legal retention end.
 3.15. Practice Better
  - Feature/Setting: Automated retention scheduling; erase session notes after timeline per compliance.
 3.16. SimplePractice
  - Feature/Setting: Data retention workflows; auto-remove inactive client records based on last appointment date.
 3.17. Slack
  - Feature/Setting: Message retention settings; limit workspace channel history based on compliance interval.
 3.18. Trello
  - Feature/Setting: Scheduled Power-Ups or Butler automation; archive/delete cards with medical info by card age.
 3.19. Monday.com
  - Feature/Setting: Date-based automations; erase boards/items flagged for healthcare data retention policies.
 3.20. Notion
  - Feature/Setting: Scheduled Database clean-up; automation to flag and delete pages in “Client Files” after X years.

Benefits

 4.1. Reduces risk of accidental data leaks or regulatory audit failures.
 4.2. Frees storage space and lowers ongoing cloud costs.
 4.3. Provides a clear audit trail of data handling and compliance actions.
 4.4. Enables acupuncturists to focus on patient care by automating complex compliance tasks.