Frank Work, Acting Information and Privacy Commissioner, today released a report on an investigation into a privacy breach by Lake Beaumaris Physical Therapy Ltd. of Edmonton.
The investigation focused on confidential health information of patients found in a field. Acting Commissioner Work directed the Team Leader, Health Information Act (HIA), to investigate the breach, with a report of the findings released today.
The report noted that some of the information contained in patient charts held by Lake Beaumaris Physical Therapy Ltd. is subject to the HIA, and therefore the patient charts must be secured to the requirements set out by the HIA. The report concluded that this was a single breach of privacy caused by human error. Section 60 of the HIA requires that reasonable steps be taken to protect the confidentiality of health information. The report makes five recommendations to help prevent a similar breach from occurring in the future.