Transcriptionist accused of stealing patient records, attempted extortion: 4 details

Unity Health Toronto, a Catholic hospital network in Canada, is alleging that a transcriptionist stole medical records and attempted to extort money for their return, according to a CTV News report.

Four details:

1. The health system's St. Michael's Hospital in Toronto hired a third-party company, Nuance Communications, to transcribe clinical notes. In May, the hospital said it found that a former company employee kept copies of several reports after transcribing them.

2. The transcriptionist is accused of using the copied medical reports of about 150 patients to extort payment from Nuance, a company based in the United States.

3. St. Michael's Hospital and Nuance are collaborating to investigate the incident and take steps to prevent similar situations in the future.

4. Law enforcement seized the computer potentially storing the medical records, and a court injunction directs the transcriptionist not to further access or share the reports.