Alberta Health Services has discovered that some Red Deer patients have had their electronic health records accessed improperly over a two-year period at Red Deer Regional Hospital Centre (RDRHC) through an internal investigation.

In total, 3,224 patients had their health record improperly accessed by two clerical employees in the Diagnostic Imaging department. One employee improperly accessed the information of 3,147 people between October 2018 and October 2020 and a co-worker improperly accessed the patient information of 77 individuals. Both individuals are no longer employed by AHS.

The majority of the patient health records were RDRHC emergency patients, coworkers and family members, and consisted of personal demographic information and clinical records. The access did not impact patient care or the accuracy of their records.

“AHS takes the privacy and confidentiality of patient information seriously, and non-work related access to patient records is a clear breach of confidentiality and a direct violation of privacy and information security policies,” said Janice Stewart, Chief Zone Officer with AHS Central Zone. “We understand that patients trust AHS to appropriately access and safeguard their health and personal information. 

“AHS remains fully committed to ensuring safeguards are in place to build this trust by preventing inappropriate access, use or disclosure of patient information.” 

The breach of information has been reported to Alberta Health and the Office of the Information and Privacy Commissioner of Alberta. The affected RDRHC patients will be notified of the breach by mail. The notifications were mailed out April 12, 2021.