Staff who allegedly tried to read Princess Kate’s private hospital records have still not been referred to the police.
Three employees at The London Clinic, where the Princess of Wales stayed for 13 days in January after her abdominal surgery, are facing disciplinary action following a potential breach of data at the hospital.
The Princess of Wales was told about the potential data breach as patients are always informed if there are any suspicions that their private medical records have been shared or accessed in an unauthorised manner.
The hospital, which also treated King Charles for his cancer treatment, said in March that any of its staff who had attempted to access patient information would face “disciplinary steps”.
Staff at The London Clinic who allegedly tried to read Kate Middleton’s private hospital records have still not been referred to the police
Getty/PA
However, the case still remains under investigation and police have yet to look into the employees, according to the Mail on Sunday.
This delay comes in spite of Health Minister Maria Caulfield announcing in March that officers had been asked to launch a probe.
Several sources have told the outlet that if a breach did occur, staff members could have been caught via a “decoy” tactic used by hospitals that treat VIP guests.
Data for the A-listers is often stored under a fake name, with “decoy” data stored under the real name – a file which is regularly checked by bosses to see if it has been opened and used without permission.
The Princess of Wales stayed at the London Clinic for 13 days in January after her abdominal surgery
Sam Smith, of health data privacy group MedConfidential, said that data breaches are “unfortunately common” but the investigation process can take a very long time.
He said: “It’s rare that people find out when a data breach has happened, even rarer that they can get the evidence to prove it, and if they do, the process is still very slow, with another source adding that it could take years for any action to be taken.
Following the allegations, the Chief Executive of the London Clinic, Al Russell, issued a statement: “There is no place at our hospital for those who intentionally breach the trust of any of our patients or colleagues.
“We take enormous pride in the outstanding care and discretion we aim to deliver for all our patients that put their trust in us every day.
King Charles announced he had been diagnosed with cancer earlier this year
King Charles and Kate were both treated at The London Clinic earlier this yearGetty
“We have systems in place to monitor management of patient information and, in the case of any breach, all appropriate investigatory, regulatory and disciplinary steps will be taken.”
The London Clinic said: “All our patients, no matter what their status, deserve total privacy and confidentiality regarding their personal medical information.”
It is a criminal offence for staff in a healthcare setting to access a patient’s private medical records without the consent of the organisation’s data controller.
