Two employees of Campbellford Memorial Hospital who inappropriately accessed the information of around 500 patients have been fired.
The hospital recently discovered and confirmed the privacy breaches by the two employees, according to a media release issued on Friday (April 1).
“We are very disappointed that these privacy breaches have occurred,” says Eric Hanna, the hospital’s interim president and CEO. “Patients expect us to protect their information and it is very unfortunate that we did not do so in this case. We apologize to everyone whose information was inappropriately accessed.”
The hospital says it is working with the Information and Privacy Commissioner of Ontario, and that all patients involved in the breaches have been notified by mail. The hospital adds that at no time was the patient information accessed by anyone outside Campbellford Memorial Hospital
According to the hospital, it already has strict rules in place around patient confidentiality, including that physicians and staff are not allowed to access patient information “unless they are currently involved in that patient’s circle of care.”
To help prevent future internal privacy breaches, the hospital says it is will taking actions to “revisit and strengthen” its patient privacy education and training.
Campbellford Memorial Hospital also says a new electronic record system introduced in December gives the hospital “increased auditing capabilities and enhances the ability to protect the privacy and confidentiality of patients.”
