Philadelphia-based Penn Medicine alerted around 900 patients that their information may have been improperly viewed by a former medical assistant at the hospital, according to The Inquirer.
Penn Medicine's Chief Privacy Officer Lauren Steinfeld said the medical assistant was a contract employee who worked at the hospital between February and late April. It is unclear which department the employee had worked for.
The hospital became aware that the employee was viewing patient records "without a work-related reason," on April 29, Ms. Steinfeld said. Information that may have been exposed included demographic and clinical information. A limited number of Social Security numbers may have also been viewed.
In one case, a patient's information was "misused," Ms. Steinfeld confirmed. However, it is unclear how the information had been used.
Penn Medicine is evaluating its staffing agencies and contractors "to ensure that contract employees meet and maintain our high professional standards," Ms. Steinfeld said.
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