Outlook messages sent to Houston Methodist email addresses are secure, but what about when you need to send confidential emails with protected health information (PHI) to someone with a non-HM email address?
To ensure that only the intended recipients can read your email, you should always use SecureMail when sending PHI. Simply compose your email as you normally would, type the word “securemail” or the words “secure mail” anywhere in the subject line, then select Send. The message will be encrypted automatically and sent to the recipient. You can include other words in the subject line but to make it secure, the word “securemail” or the words “secure mail” must be included.
The recipient will receive an email notifying them they’ve received a secure message. The body of the email will contain instructions. The recipient will need to click on Click here to view your secure message within one week of receiving the email. Recipients will be required to create a SecureMail account to read the secure email. Once a SecureMail account is created, the recipient can use that same account to log in to read additional secure messages sent to them from HM senders. Recipients can reply to the sender, but encrypted emails can’t be forwarded.
