DataBreaches.Net

Menu
  • About
  • Breach Notification Laws
  • Privacy Policy
  • Transparency Report
Menu

Ca: Dumpster records doctor will not be charged

Posted on August 11, 2012 by Dissent

The Regina Leader-Post staff reports the follow-up on a Saskatchewan breach reported previously on this blog:

The doctor who was responsible for patient files found in a Regina recycling bin last March will not be charged.

The provincial Information and Privacy Commissioner Gary Dickson conducted a four-month investigation last year and recommended that the Minister of Justice consider prosecuting Dr. Teik Im Ooi under the Health Information Protection Act (HIPA).

The government had the commissioner’s recommendation reviewed by the Public Prosecutions Division and then by a private law firm to determine if charges were warranted under HIPA.

Both reviews concluded there wasn’t enough evidence to pursue charges, saying the prosecution wouldn’t be able to prove Ooi knew her safeguards were insufficient to prevent the incident.

Read more on the StarPhoenix.

I don’t know what, if anything, the Saskatchewan College of Physicians did, as they did not provide a comment.

Patrick Book of CJME adds:

Justice Minister Gord Wyant admitted the law needs to be looked at.

“There’s a flaw in the legislation,” he admitted in an interview with reporters at the Legislature Friday morning. “Perhaps we need to talk about issues of chain of custody, those kind of things. Lowering the threshold to ensure that if this does happen again we would have the grounds to be able to pursue a prosecution.”

He said the province intends to put together a working group to investigate what appropriate changes to the legislation could be.

Privacy Commissioner Gary Dickson is hopeful that process proves fruitful. He noted that no one has ever been charged for breaches, even though they happen fairly regularly. That’s because the law dictates the government would have to be able to prove that a doctor, who is charged with caring for the files, is aware of or involved in the improper disposal of records.

If that’s the case, yes, they need to lower the standard as the doctor is ultimately responsible as custodian of a patient’s records. There will be times when they do not know what an employee has done or when an employee violates privacy by discarding of records improperly, but the law should allow someone to be held responsible or liable.

Category: Health Data

Post navigation

← Federal court – no authority to enforce HIPAA in private actions
Official Australian honda news site hacked →

Now more than ever

"Stand with Ukraine:" above raised hands. The illustration is in blue and yellow, the colors of Ukraine's flag.

Search

Browse by Categories

Recent Posts

  • ICE takes steps to deport the Australian hacker known as “DR32”
  • Hearing on the Federal Government and AI
  • Nigerian National Sentenced To More Than Five Years For Hacking, Fraud, And Identity Theft Scheme
  • Data breach of patient info ends in firing of Miami hospital employee
  • Texas DOT investigates breach of crash report records, sends notification letters
  • PowerSchool hacker pleads guilty, released on personal recognizance bond
  • Rewards for Justice offers $10M reward for info on RedLine developer or RedLine’s use by foreign governments
  • New evidence links long-running hacking group to Indian government
  • Zaporizhzhia Cyber ​​Police Exposes Hacker Who Caused Millions in Losses to Victims by Mining Cryptocurrency
  • Germany fines Vodafone $51 million for privacy, security breaches

No, You Can’t Buy a Post or an Interview

This site does not accept sponsored posts or link-back arrangements. Inquiries about either are ignored.

And despite what some trolls may try to claim: DataBreaches has never accepted even one dime to interview or report on anyone. Nor will DataBreaches ever pay anyone for data or to interview them.

Want to Get Our RSS Feed?

Grab it here:

https://databreaches.net/feed/

RSS Recent Posts on PogoWasRight.org

  • The Decision That Murdered Privacy
  • Hearing on the Federal Government and AI
  • California county accused of using drones to spy on residents
  • How the FBI Sought a Warrant to Search Instagram of Columbia Student Protesters
  • Germany fines Vodafone $51 million for privacy, security breaches
  • Malaysia enacts data sharing rules for public sector
  • U.S. Enacts Take It Down Act

Have a News Tip?

Email: Tips[at]DataBreaches.net

Signal: +1 516-776-7756

Contact Me

Email: info[at]databreaches.net

Mastodon: Infosec.Exchange/@PogoWasRight

Signal: +1 516-776-7756

DMCA Concern: dmca[at]databreaches.net
© 2009 – 2025 DataBreaches.net and DataBreaches LLC. All rights reserved.