Growing threat from NHS data breaches

The Information Commissioner has called a meeting with NHS chief executive Sir David Nicholson to discuss the millions of personal medical records lost by health service trusts and hospitals. The commissioner, Sir Christopher Graham, said he will impose fines...
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Tests to begin on patient data sharing

Cloud computing could be used to share confidential patient data with consultants and GPs. The pilot study between Chelsea and Westminster Hospital, Edinburgh Napier University and developer Flexiant is designed to improve data sharing. The project has been in development for 18...
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Information safety

The National Health Service holds huge amounts of data but are those in charge of the data doing enough to protect it, asks Richard Mackillican. Earlier this year the Information Commissioner’s Office announced that it had received reports of over 1,000 data breaches of which just under a...

NHS trust to increase data security

Managers at the East & North Hertfordshire NHS Trust are increasing data security following a breach of the Data Protection Act.

The breach involved a USB stick which contained patient’s details which had been lost on a train.

Review of future of Dr Foster Intelligence

The future of Dr Foster Intelligence, one of the UK’s main providers of information, analysis and targeted communications to health and social care organisations, is under review, the Department of Health and Dr Foster Holdings LLP has been announced.

The review will explore strategic options for the future of Dr Foster Intelligence. This follows the recent White Paper 'Equity and Excellence: Liberating the NHS', which stated the Government’s commitment to the introduction...

Peak in asthma hospital admissions among young children in September, provisional figures show

Hospital admissions for asthma among children aged 16 and under were 58 per cent higher in September 2009 than the monthly average for the year, provisional figures released by the NHS Information Centre show.

The same pattern occurred in September 2008 when there was a 102 per cent increase compared to the monthly average for between May 2009 and April 2009...