Derriford Hospital is reported to have lost confidential data over seventeen times in the last two years. The theft included laptops, which led to the sending of patient blood reports to the wrong addresses. A spokesman from the hospital stated that almost 800,000 patients are admitted in a year and the loss of confidential data is both sensitive and important issue.
He also wanted to reassure the patients that their safety and quality of care would remain the hospital’s highest priority, which is why confidentiality of information would be made stricter. Loss of confidential data can cause chaos in the day-to-day functioning of a hospital.
All of the stolen laptops were password encrypted and the computers came from diverse areas such as the maternity, occupational health and diabetes departments. Although the police were informed about the incidents, in every case no information was recovered.
Hospitals in Devon and Cornwall have also experience data loss several times due to thefts. Hospitals cannot afford to lose valuable information during thefts as human lives are dependent on them, making a backup system like the online backup service essential.
