Health staff told to hand over patient files held on computer

HEALTH workers have been told to hand over computer files carrying patients' personal details in an effort to prevent any more private data going missing in the Lothians.

All 25,000 staff at NHS Lothian have been warned they must not store sensitive details on their own computer memory sticks or laptops.

Anyone who has done so has been urged to hand in the files during the amnesty.

The move comes as it emerged a memory stick containing the data of 143 patients that went missing earlier this year has still not been recovered.

The instructions have been issued to staff in a leaflet included with this month's pay slips.

Staff are also warned that a new system is being introduced to monitor what is being downloaded from NHS computers.

A total of 60 calls have been made by concerned health workers within days of the warning being issued, asking what to do with data they hold.

Director of public health and health policy, Dr Alison McCallum, said: "Patients and staff have every right to expect the details we hold on them to be kept secure.

"The leaflets are the latest part of our campaign to reinforce the message that sensitive information must never be downloaded on to personal computing devices such as data sticks.

"At the same time we are holding a data amnesty, so staff can safely dispose of any data sticks or discs holding inappropriate information.

"We are also urging staff who may have downloaded information to other computers, such as laptops, to contact our e-security experts, who will make sure it is properly removed."

NHS bosses are concerned that data that staff may have deleted from their own computers could still be retrieved if it fell into the wrong hands.

Police and the NHS are still searching for the missing memory stick that sparked the alert.

The staff member responsible – who has not been identified – is undergoing disciplinary action. The lost stick contained the medical history of 143 patients from in and around Edinburgh from 2006 to 2008.

The data protection guidelines are also to be spelled out more strongly to new employees.

Director of eHealth, Martin Egan, added: "We have been very active in reminding staff about the importance of data security.

"I am pleased that this has resulted in a number of calls to our eHealth team from staff wanting to make sure they are following the correct procedures."