Priory Medical Centre in Warwick closed its medical centre in June 2021. And they relocated to a new surgery with the same name. But outside the unused surgery, they left an unlocked cabinet, which contained patients’ confidential files.
The abandoned files contained confidential information about patients, including names, dates of birth, addresses and NHS numbers. The files also contained details such as a date patient was registered. The unsecured cabinet was left for some time in the doorway of the unused facility.
Most of the patients whose data was left unsecured live in the area. Most have moved to the new surgery or to surgeries nearby.
‘It is obviously an old system before everything went digital but in this age of scams and identity fraud it makes no difference, extreme care should be taken with all our information.’
‘It sounds like many of those whose details were on the cards still live in the area and are still registered patients at the surgery or others nearby.’
‘I just hope the files are safely removed as quickly as possible before any damage is done.’
A spokesperson for the NHS Coventry and Warwickshire Clinical Commissioning Group said:
“We were made aware of four mini-filing cabinets containing patient information, found at unused GP practice premises in Warwick. Based on the information gathered to date, the data appears to be historic.
‘This data has been recovered and secured, according to information governance procedures, and we are working with the practice to understand this data breach and any potential impact on patients.”
The data breach could have detrimental effects on the individuals concerned if it falls into the wrong hands. The incident could also have caused distress to the people affected.
If your confidential information has been wrongly disclosed by a medical organisation and this has caused you distress, you could potentially have a data breach claim for compensation.
If your personal data has been breached please get in touch with DRM Legal and one of our specialist solicitors will be able to advise if you have a valid claim.