Data watchdog opens ‘inquiry' into CHI Tallaght over safety of children's records
Data Protection Commission
has opened an 'inquiry' into
Children's Health Ireland
(CHI) Tallaght relating to the physical safety and security of children's health records.
Last month
The Irish Times reported
that the watchdog had conducted an unannounced inspection of a shared office for nonconsultant hospital doctors on the first floor of the hospital on July 16th.
It is understood the door to the shared office, containing hundreds of patient charts, was propped open – making it accessible to people walking by. When closed properly, the door is locked with a keypad.
In a statement on Thursday, the watchdog said it became aware there were 'potential issues' at the site from a number of different sources, including protected disclosures and a breach notification submitted to it by CHI.
READ MORE
'This formal inquiry will examine CHI's compliance with their GDPR obligations, in particular relating to the security of personal data and the processes that CHI have in place for managing physical records at CHI (Tallaght),' the statement said.
On the day after the unannounced inspection, Dr Turlough Bolger, a consultant in emergency medicine, sent an email to staff at the hospital highlighting concerns expressed by the commission.
'The report will be received in the coming weeks but they expressed concern regarding the number of charts in the room yesterday (about 320 charts) and the amount of loose pages with patient details,' his email states.
'I expect that the recommendations will be wide-ranging and damaging to CHI at Tallaght.'
Dr Bolger said he appreciated the 'hard work' made by staff to reduce the number of outstanding discharge charts in recent weeks, which had seen a 'significant reduction' from 900 to 600 charts.
'I have said repeatedly that there needs to be a sustainable approach to this issue. Ultimately, as the accountable officer in CHI at Tallaght, I am responsible for the overall situation regarding medical records.'
Dr Bolger said, as the accountable officer, he 'cannot rely on blitzes to clear backlogs as routine'.
In order to clear the current backlog, Dr Bolger said he had requested that four nonconsultant hospital doctors be allocated to discharges daily. He added that there needed to be 'an emphasis on the use of the confidential shredding bin for most of the loose pages'.
A spokeswoman for CHI said 'immediate measures' were taken after the unannounced inspection to reduce potential risks, 'including reinforcing physical safeguards and engaging directly with staff'.
'Additional actions will follow, as appropriate, in line with our internal procedures and any recommendations issued by the DPC as part of its broader oversight,' she said.
The spokeswoman added that CHI was transitioning to a 'fully digital health records system and, once complete, this will significantly reduce reliance on paper charts'.
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Irish Times
3 hours ago
- Irish Times
Mairead McGuinness to drop out of presidential race
Former European Commissioner and MEP Mairead McGuinness is dropping out of the presidential election race for health reasons. In a statement she said: 'I have made the very difficult decision to withdraw my name as the Fine Gael nominee for the Presidential election. 'This decision is not lightly taken and follows a stay in hospital last week. 'My priority now is my health. Given that the election is in a short couple of months, I do not believe that I have the strength to give the campaign my all.' READ MORE 'I am taking this decision on medical advice and while it is extremely difficult, it is the right decision for me and my family.' Ms McGuinness was one of just two official candidates in the race and she led recent opinion polls . Her surprise departure from the race throws the election wide open. The other candidate who has enough confirmed support to secure a place on the ballot paper is Independent TD Catherine Connolly who has the backing of The Social Democrats, Labour and People Before Profit. Fianna Fáil and Sinn Féin are still deliberating on their approach to the presidential election and whether or not they will run candidates. In recent days businessman Gareth Sheridan has announced his intention to run saying he will seek nominations from local authorities . People who wish to enter the race must have nominations from 20 Oireachtas members or four county or city councils. In her statement Ms McGuinness said: 'I appreciate that this will come as a shock and disappointment to party members and colleagues in Fine Gael, but our political family is strong. 'I have spoken with the Tánaiste and Party leader, Simon Harris, and thank him for his support and understanding. 'I also want to thank all of those people who have done so much to support me, now and in the past. 'My focus now is my health and my family, and I ask for privacy in the time ahead.' Mr Harris said: 'Mairead McGuinness has made an incredible contribution to public life in Ireland and in Europe. 'It was our clear view in Fine Gael and the view of many people across Ireland that Mairead would make an excellent President of Ireland. 'Mairead's health will not now allow this. 'This has come as an awful shock to us all. Mairead is a valued member of our Fine Gael family. It is absolutely essential that she now prioritises her health and I know I speak for everyone when I wish her all the very best on that journey. 'In the coming days, Fine Gael, like others, will consider further the presidential election. Our Executive Council will convene to do this. 'But that's for the time ahead, not for today. Today I want to pay tribute to Mairead. I want to thank her for all she has done. I want to wish her and Tom and their family all the best at this time and she knows we are all sending her our very best.'
RTÉ News
4 hours ago
- RTÉ News
CHI being investigated over data breach at Tallaght University Hospital
The Data Protection Commission (DPC) has launched an inquiry into Children's Health Ireland (CHI) over the physical safety and security of children's personal health records at the CHI facility on the Tallaght University Hospital (TUH) campus. It is understood a number of children's patient records were stored in a room at that facility that was not locked and could easily be accessed by anyone in the building. The DPC said it first became aware of potential issues at the site "from a number of different sources of information". The information included multiple protected disclosures received by the DPC from CHI employees, as well as a breach notification submitted to it by CHI. After the Commission reviewed this information it conducted an unannounced site inspection on 16 July, which RTÉ News understands confirmed data protection issues in relation to patient records at the CHI facility and that they had been ongoing for some time. It is understood hundreds of children's patient records are held in this room at any one time, but that access to the area is not sufficiently restricted. According to the DPC, its inquiry will focus on CHI's compliance with its GDPR obligations, in particular relating to the security of personal data and the processes CHI has in place for managing physical records at CHI (Tallaght). Such DPC investigations can take up to a year or more to complete, however, it is expected this inquiry could be concluded much quicker. CHI has said it is co-operating fully with the DPC investigation. In a statement, it added that its "priority is the protection of patient information and ensuring all personal data is handled in line with our legal obligations".
Irish Independent
5 hours ago
- Irish Independent
Data Protection investigation underway into security around hundreds of patient records at Children's Health Ireland facility
It is looking at the physical safety and security of children's health records kept at the CHI-run section. A large quantity of children's records were kept in the CHI facility in a room that was not locked and could be accessed by anyone, it is alleged. The Commissioner said it as opening of an inquiry into CHI security procedures relating to the physical safety and security of children's health records within one specific CHI facility in Tallaght. "The DPC became aware that there were potential issues at this site from a number of different sources of information, including through protected disclosures that the DPC received and also a breach notification submitted to the DPC by CHI. Having reviewed the information, the DPC conducted an unannounced site inspection on Wednesday 16 July, 2025,' a spokesperson said. It said the inquiry will "examine CHI's compliance with their GDPR obligations, in particular relating to the security of personal data and the processes that CHI have in place for managing physical records at CHI (Tallaght)." The DPC said it became aware that there were potential issues at this site from a number of different sources of information. It said these included protected disclosures that the DPC received, and also a breach notification submitted to the DPC by CHI. Having reviewed the information, the DPC conducted an unannounced site inspection on Wednesday, July 16. A statement said: "The Data Protection Commission (DPC) has today announced the opening of an inquiry into Children's Health Ireland (CHI), relating to the physical safety and security of children's health records within one specific CHI facility in Tallaght. CHI said in response that the Data Protection Commission has commenced an investigation into matters relating to patient records at CHI at Tallaght. "We are cooperating fully with the DPC. As this is an ongoing regulatory process, it would be inappropriate to comment further at this time. "Our priority remains the protection of patient information and ensuring all personal data is handled in line with our legal obligations." In June, Dublin's Education and Training Board was fined €125,000 by the DPC after the personal details of 13,000 grant applicants were made available to unauthorised persons.
