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GPs 'are data security risk'
Category: Data security
6 October, 2008
The chief executive of the NHS has warned organisations to make sure that removable data is encrypted and that there are compliance procedures in place, after GPs have been identified as a risk to data security.Futhermore, primary care trusts should conduct a risk assessment of the transportation of data where a patient could be identified, a letter from the NHS chief executive David Nicholson advises senior NHS management.
Information commissioner Richard Thomas is particularly worried about local doctors because of their independent status and dispersed nature, the letter states.
"Each practice is legally responsible for holding data securely and we are looking at the national contract and considering how best to secure compliance with standards through contractual means in the future," Mr Nicholson writes.
Meanwhile, General Practitioners Committee negotiator Dr Chaand Nagpaul tells medical media forum Pulse that data security risks are easier to monitor in smaller organisations, with breaches more likely to occur in hospitals.
In related news, it has been widely reported that the new £12 billion NHS computer system crashes on a regular basis, resulting in patient information being intermittently lost.
