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Nine NHS trusts in England have admitted losing patient records in a fresh case of wholesale data loss by government services, it has emerged.
At least 168,000 patients have been affected by the breaches, which came to light during a data security review by the Government.
The Department of Health said that patients had been told of the losses and that there was no evidence that data had fallen into the wrong hands.
Opposition parties condemned the systems of record-keeping that led to the security breaches, after losses of the details of millions of child benefit claimants and drivers in recent weeks.
One of the breaches was thought to be the loss of names and addresses of 160,000 patients by City and Hackney Primary Care Trust, after a disc failed to arrive at a hospital in East London. Another, lost by Gloucester Partnership Foundation Trust, included archive records on patients treated 40 years ago – none of whom is still alive.
The details of the data lost by the other trusts involved – Bolton Royal Hospital, Sutton and Merton PCT, Sefton Merseyside PCT, Mid-Essex Care Trust, and Norfolk and Norwich Trust – have not been disclosed. The East and North Hertfordshire Trust reported a loss but has since found its missing data. Maidstone and Tunbridge Wells NHS Trust has also reported two breaches.
The Department of Health said that the security breaches were being dealt with locally. A spokesman said that investigations were under way and action would be taken against anyone who had failed to fulfil their responsibilities under data protection laws.
The disc containing information on 160,000 patients for the East London hospital had been “encrypted to an extremely high level of security”, he said, adding that another 8,000 patients’ records from the other trusts had been affected but only a small proportion contained clinical data.
Andrew Lansley, the Shadow Health Secretary, said yesterday: “You have to wonder why on earth it took the Revenue & Customs to lose their discs and for the Government to institute an inquiry across government for these losses of data to come to light. It does feel like there’s a sense in all parts of government that we’re required to provide data and we are constantly told that it will be protected, but in reality that level of protection simply isn’t there.”
Norman Lamb, the Liberal Democrat health spokesman, said: “The whole culture of data management in the public sector has to change.”
Richard Vautrey, of the British Medical Association, said that there was a strong case for patients having their information immediately available when they saw doctors in different medical situations. But he added: “It’s vitally important that any development of centralised systems is done in a careful and measured way.”
Joyce Robins, of the patient support group Patient Care, said that ministers could not gloss over yet another “scandal”. She said: “Health records can have anything from your ex-directory phone number to your HIV status.”
The department said: “Since the heightened concern about data protection, a small number of trusts have reported breaches of their own security rules. There are strict guidelines and procedures for dealing with breaches.” The Post Office apologised last night to thousands of pensioners when it emerged that about 120 account statements were sent to the wrong customers. The incident came to light in a memo from a civil servant at the Department for Work and Pensions, which said that 5,500 monthly Post Office card account statements had been mixed up. It later said that the number of accounts that had been sent to wrong addresses was much lower.
Losing streak
Nov 20 News of two CDs with details of 25 million Britons lost in post from a Revenue & Customs office in Tyne & Wear
Nov 23 It emerges that six more CDs with confidential information went missing in the HMRC post
Dec 5 HMRC admits seven serious security breaches in past 2 years
Dec 7 Details of up to 60,000 people lost by Citizens Advice Bureau after a laptop was stolen
Dec 17 Government says records of more than three million British learner drivers lost in the US
Dec 18 HMRC admits losing data of 6,500 private pension holders
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I have serious concerns about the "people" who lost all these records in the last couple of years. Identity fraud is big business and with so many people holding jobs who are already using somebody elses identity who knows what is actually going on. We have had people working in securiety who are illegal immigrants some of whom it would appear can't even be deported because nobody knows where they originated from in the first place. Our life, our health, and our business seems to be open to anybody and this government had perpetrated this insidious problem for us all.
christine marshall , Cambridge , Cambridgeshire UK
This is the WORST goverment we have ever had regarding the British publics lack of trust with their personal data. I for one will break the law if I.D card ever come into being. And many ( profesional men/women have agreed with me ) so jail all us dr's/nurses/firemen/paramedics. I dare you.
John, Essex, UK
This problem is not confined to Britain. It is going on all over the world.
Wini, Hampshire,
Ho Hum . Havenât we heard this previously when the records were first created. Then they said it was the right decision. Like Brown signing up for the EU Treaty/Constitution. He despises the British peoples our culture our identity as he populates these Islands with every type of people that suddenly are no longer salled refugees but immigrants. Her despises us and takes us for idiots and fools. Immediately he signed (what an embarrassing mess he made of it) up to the EU treaty we the sucker British public are due to pay £71billions. Yes £71billions, on top of the £12Billions we now pay annually.
Over 13 yrs the very brave EU Auditors have told us up to 95% of this £12Billions of our money is unaccounted for/missing--- maybe Stolen???. And Brown is happy to pay more and more. No questions asked. Wake up Britain we need to get these deceitful lying nightmares out of power. We need a Cromwell or someone to clean out the parliamentary stables. Far to many vested interests.
Oh thatâs why we are now taxed on everything that moves. The Navy, Army and Air force has been decimated, the NHS cant afford Dental and allsorts of medicines just to pay for membership of what has to be one of the most corrupt bodies in the History of the World the EU.
A body that is trying to and is destroying our democracy along with our politicians. Why do they need another 120,000 more laws passed by the EU to govern us??? Does anyone know what these laws say for certainly our EU MEP's donât know, neither do our MP's,
I know as a Parliamentary candidate I was fortunate enough to meet some of these concerned men and women who are horrified.
They want to get the EU Dictat in that we have ID cards no matter what.
Write or phone or meet with your MP and TELL him not to vote for the EU Treaty in the coming debate. Tell him you will be watching so will your Friends. Our deficit with EU trade is massive. We cant afford the EU. Its destroying out nation.
Jas, Farnborough, UK
No matter what new rules and punishments are thought up by our clever people in government, the same old lawless, drunken oiks are supposed to abide by them. The employees and even the software writers of "systems" within these huge and convoluted government bodies are not capable of the moral and ethical standards required to be in positions of trust.
The genetic degradation within the society in general has fallen so far that you may as well think up new rules of behaviour for sharks and foxes. The end results will be exactly the same. Vanishing fish and dead chickens.
Let's face it: the less power government has, the better. And the less of our information they have which they can lose, steal, or sell to the highest bidder, the better. New rules or new committees discussing the issues around a big table and then making pleasing sounds to the media, before going off and messing everything up again in their old way, are not the answer to anything but their own wages.
iain carstairs, bedford, UK
Who thought it would be clever to have an email address that says "deli.cio.us"?
Is this how anyone really thinks, that embedding fatuous meaningless in some techno acronym would impress everyone? I feel nauseous every time I see it.
iain carstairs, bedford, UK
Using a Microsoft operating system is inherently bad if you want security. Use Unix or Linux or the one the NHS paid to have written a few years ago.
David White, Falmouth, Cornwall
I did, and you made a bollocks of it! Merry Christmas!
John Lee, Ellesmere Port, Cheshire., UK.
As paradoxical as it may seem, this latest mishandling of data is actually an argument FOR the national medical records databse (The Spine).
As a result clinicians having direct access to a patient's basic medical information (e.g. allergies, medication, recent treatment) there will be no need to send discs.
As this information will be patient controlled, there is no worry about your sensitive data being used against your will.
As access will be role based, there is also no worry about the wrong person getting into you information.
At present, medical records in the NHS are too easily accessible, and it is not possible to see who has looked at what.
You or I could stroll into most hospital libraries and start to nose around. With the electronic system, there will be stringent security in place, as well as a visible "audit trail" of information.
We will know who has looked at what and when. Furthermore, it will improve patient care, as your doctor will have instant access.
Balthasaar, Tadley, Hampshire
Contrary to many assertions, a centralised data warehouse accessed via secure networks would solve the problem of data being lost rather than create further potential for loss. It is because data is being sent by post that there is an issue.
Alex Ritchie, Salisbury, UK