St. Vincent Health, based in Indianapolis, has notified approximately 1,100 people that a laptop containing their personal health information was stolen from St. Vincent Indianapolis Hospital.
The laptop, which had been connected to an electroencephalogram machine and was functioning as a medical device, was stolen Dec. 22, 2013. The password-protected laptop contained the patients' names, dates of birth, gender, dates of service, types of service and physician names.
The theft has been reported to local law enforcement, and St. Vincent officials believe the risk of identity theft to be low.
"We are committed to protecting the confidentiality and privacy of our patients, and will continue to implement administrative, technical and physical safeguards against unauthorized disclosures of protected health information," said Rex McKinney, privacy officer at St. Vincent Indianapolis Hospital, in a statement. "We regret any inconveniences caused by this theft, and have made it a priority to inform and direct patients to the necessary resources to ensure protection of their personal information."
More Articles on Data Breaches:
7 Recent Healthcare Data Breaches
The IT Infrastructures That Attract the Most Malicious Traffic
WEDI Publishes Breach Notification Guidelines