ARE PATIENTS’ PERSONAL INFORMATION SAFE AND SECURE?
HOSPITAL POSTS PATIENTS’ PERSONAL INFO ON INTERNET
The New York Times is reporting NewYork-Presbyterian Hospital/Columbia University Medical Center published patients’ personal health information, including 10 Social Security numbers, from about 6,800 patients, on the Internet. The hospitals made a statement that the patients’ personal information was posted by mistake.
Myrna Manners, a spokeswoman for the hospital, said it appeared that someone internally had made a mistake, and that there as no criminal wrongdoing. Ms. Manners (is that her real name?), said the patient data, like names, ages, surgical status, temperature and pulse had become accessible to Internet search engines. Ms. Manners also said it did not appear the patients’ diagnoses had been exposed. Well that makes me feel better already! How about you?