LOS ANGELES—A physician’s stolen laptop from Children’s Hospital Los Angeles may have contained personal medical information for over 3,600 patients.
According to a press release sent to Canyon News from CHLA spokesman, Lorenzo Benet, the laptop was stolen from a CHLA physician’s locked car on October 18, 2016. The physician was part of the Children’s Hospital Los Angeles Medical Group (CHLAMG), but practiced at CHLA.
Officials have stated that it remains unclear whether the laptop was encrypted or not, which is why the hospital decided to notify patients and impacted families. All notifications are being sent by mail.
“Following the notification regarding the burglary, an investigation took place to determine whether patient health information existed on the laptop,” said Benet. “Based on the investigation, the laptop has not been used to access the internet. From that information, we believe that all data may have been erased from the device without any patient data being accessed.”
According to the CHLA, the laptop included names, addresses, medical record numbers, and some clinical information.
Since the incident, CHLA and CHLAMG, have established electronic security protocols to protect the hospital’s equipment.
Patients and families that may have been impacted can contact CHLA at (844) 299-6983, Monday through Friday from 6 a.m. to 6 p.m.
