A thumb drive containing x-ray records of more than 33,700 patients was stolen during a burglary at an outpatient facility in Santa Rosa, CA, earlier this month.
The thumb drive was taken from a staff member's locker at the former Redwood Regional Medical Group's office at 121 Sotoyome St. on June 2, St. Joseph Health spokeswoman Katy Hillenmeyer said, according to a story reported by CBS San Francisco.
The drive included backup records of x-rays acquired between February 2009 and May 13 of this year. The records were going to be transferred from Redwood Regional to Santa Rosa Memorial Hospital's electronic medical record system, she said.
Information on the thumb drive included the patients' first and last names, gender, medical record number, date of birth, date and time of service, area of the body x-rayed, the x-ray technologist's name, and the radiation level, she said. The stolen information did not include patients' Social Security numbers, financial information, insurance data, or diagnoses, Hillenmeyer added.
St. Joseph Health reported the theft to the California Department of Public Health on June 9, and an internal investigation by St. Joseph Health and Santa Rosa police is underway, she said. Santa Rosa Memorial Hospital is mailing personal letters this week to all patients affected by the theft, according to the CBS San Francisco report.
