Confidential patient information found on a street in Barcelona

Confidential patient information found on a street in Barcelona
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By m.p. - Nov 3, 2009 - 2:50 PM

The Hospital Clínic in Barcelona - www.20minutos.es

The records on heart transplant patients appear to have been dumped and then scattered by the wind along the pavement

Confidential medical information on 173 heart transplant patients has been found scattered around the pavement 300 metres away from the hospital where the surgery was performed, the Hospital Clínic in Barcelona. It relates to surgery carried out between 1998 and 2007 and was found in the early hours of Sunday with other hospital documentation near a rubbish container in the city.

El País reports this Tuesday that they appear to have been dumped at the side of the full bin and scattered by the wind along the pavement.

The documents are an extensive list of the 173 patients, including their names, sex and age, and the date of the transplant. Those who died following the surgery are also noted. The period in question starts from the year heart transplant surgery was first performed at the Hospital Clínic.

The newspaper said dumping of such documentation contravenes legally-protected patient confidentiality and also the data protection law.

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