Ward Help Center
Everything you need to run your HIPAA Security Risk Assessment in Ward and get ready for the 2026 Security Rule — written so you never have to contact support. Ward is free and local-first: your patient data never leaves your computer.
New here? Start with Getting started, then Completing the assessment. In a hurry? Jump to the “How do I…?” recipe index or the Troubleshooting & FAQ.
Browse by topic
1. Getting started
What Ward is, the local-first promise, what an SRA is, your first run, the tabs, and multi-client (MSP) mode.
2. Completing the assessment
The 108-question flow, the four answer states, plain-English guidance, rating gaps (likelihood × impact), saving, and the risk register & heatmap.
3. The 2026 readiness meter
The ten mandates, proposed-vs-final labels, severity weighting, how the percentage is computed, and the “top blockers.”
4. POA&M (remediation tracking)
The per-question POA&M and the per-mandate POA&M: owner, target date, status, and overdue flags.
5. Asset inventory & data map
Build the 2026-required inventory of every system that touches ePHI, map data flows, and surface unencrypted assets.
6. Policy management
Ten editable policy templates, local versioning with dated history, and workforce attestation.
7. Scan / pen-test / IR cadence
Five recurring 2026 obligations, locally-computed due dates, overdue flags, and evidence notes.
8. Exports & the OCR audit binder
Markdown, CSV, Excel, JSON, print-to-PDF, and the one-click 11-document audit binder ZIP.
9. Security & privacy
The local-first guarantee, integrity checksums, where data lives, backup/export, and reset.
10. Troubleshooting & FAQ
Score looks wrong, meter confusion, overdue cadence, data persistence/reset, import/export — plus a “How do I…?” recipe index.
Important: not legal or compliance advice
Ward is a self-assessment aid — not legal advice, not compliance advice, and not an official OCR (HHS Office for Civil Rights) audit. It helps you organize and document your own HIPAA Security Rule risk analysis. The 2026 content is based on the proposed rule (the December 2024 NPRM) and may change before it is finalized. Always confirm your obligations with qualified legal/compliance counsel. Using Ward does not by itself make you HIPAA-compliant.