Phoenixville (Pa.) Hospital has fired an employee for accessing patient medical records without authorization, the Reading Eagle reported July 8.
Tower Health, which operates the hospital, learned that an employee had accessed several patient's medical records without legitimate reason between October 2021 and May 1, according to the publication.
Upon learning of the snooping, the hospital immediately suspended and later fired the employee, according to the report.
The records accessed contained patient protected information, including names, addresses, dates of birth, dates of appointments, diagnoses, data on vital signs, medications, test results and notes. In some instances, partial Social Security numbers, names of medical insurance providers and medical insurance identification numbers were also viewed.
The hospital did not disclose how many patients were affected, but said it had notified them.