The GMC has today launched a formal consultation on updating its guidance on doctors’ obligations to respect confidentiality and patients’ privacy. The move has been prompted by the need to clarify doctors’ ability to comply with the current guidance, in light of changes in legislation and the impact of the web on the availability of…
Author: Dissent
MD Anderson clerk accused of ID theft
Brian Rogers reports: A 26-year-old former clerk at the University of Texas M.D. Anderson Cancer Center is being sought on charges that she stole identities of hospital patients, prosecutors said Monday. Angelina Cloud-Equam is accused of fraudulent use and possession of identifying information, a third-degree felony, said Donna Hawkins, a spokeswoman for the Harris County…
MT: Panel weighs prescription database: Privacy issues raised
Tristan Scott reports: Cancer survivor Lois Fitzpatrick worries that a prescription drug database proposed for the upcoming session of the Montana Legislature would compromise her privacy and hinder patients’ access to pain medications. Mark Long, chief of the narcotics bureau for Montana’s Division of Criminal Investigations, fears that if the drug registry fails, addicts and…
NY: County Owned Laptop Stolen
The Erie County Executive’s office issued a statement Friday announcing a county laptop comuter [sic] was reported stolen from a county health facility at 608 William Street. The county says the theft appears to have occurred on or about August 28th. County Attorney Cheryl Green says once staff discovered the theft, they reported it to…
Data breach, mailing error effecting St. Mary's patients (follow-up)
A mailing processing error has affected notifications to 7,000 clients and patients of Saint Mary’s Regional Medical Center in Reno about a possible data breach. Hospital officials say the credit reporting bureau Equifax sent initial notification letters to incorrect post office boxes. In all, Saint Mary’s sent letters to about 128,000 people in July after…
UK: NHS hit by loss of sexual health data
A memory stick containing information about the STI tests of 146 people has gone missing from the Chelsea and Westminster Hospital. All patients have been informed of the loss. The stick is assumed to have been stolen on Thursday 21st August. Read more in Pink News