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Stolen laptop reveals unsecured GMH data

by Mindy Aguon

There's been a breach at the Guam Memorial Hospital.  A laptop computer used by the agency's Employee Health Office was stolen in late-October, but hospital officials didn't realize what information was contained in the computer until late last week.  GMH Spokesperson Connor Murphy says an investigation is underway to determine how the laptop was stolen from a locked office. 

GMH is required by the federal Health Information Technology for Economic and Clinical Health Act to issue a notice of breach of unsecured health information.  Murphy says the stolen computer contained the names of approximately 2,000 employees, volunteers, contractors and physicians and also included the dates of their last physical examinations and vaccination, Tuberculosis, and Hepatitis 'B' statuses. 

GMH officials stress that Social Security Numbers, dates of birth, addresses or financial information were not included in the breach.  Murphy adds the hospital has implemented several policy changes to ensure a breach does not occur again, such as limiting the number of computers on which protected health information is stored.

They also plan to further secure each individual file that contains protected health information with passwords and proper data encryption.