A POOLE man has spoken of his fears for patient confidentiality after a letter confirming a hospital appointment arrived with someone else’s personal details.

Paul Taylor was shocked to receive confidential information for another patient in a letter from the Royal Bournemouth and Christchurch Hospital.

Now the retired gas board manager is demanding to know who has been sent his own personal information.

“When I opened the envelope, I found a letter confirming my appointment, but also a separate sheet with the name, age, address, and other information for another patient,” he said.

“The whole experience has left me wondering what has happened to my information. Under the Data Protection Act, the hospital is supposed to make sure my information remains confidential.”

His concerns follow a recent statement from the Information Commissioner’s Office, which revealed the NHS has recorded more serious data breaches than any other UK organisation since 2007.

Mr Taylor’s concerns come as the NHS continues its drive to digitise patient records and store personal information on a central database.

BMA representative Dr Tom McKinstry said doctors were concerned that patients would continue to be offered the right to opt out of the NHS’ computerised Care Records Service.

He said billions of pounds had already been wasted on attempts to implement the system, and warned a new government may axe it.

Dr Mary Armitage, the hospital’s medical director, apologised for the incident and pledged a thorough investigation.

“Unfortunately, due to human error, Mr Taylor received information relating to another patient, for which we have apologised. We have also contacted, and apologised to, the patient whose details he received,” she said.

“The trust takes data protection and patient confidentiality very seriously. All staff are made aware of the importance of these issues during staff induction and mandatory training.”