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Health boards are to be given £1 million by the Scottish Government to help them improve their IT security. Health Secretary Nicola Sturgeon announced the extra investment today, following last week's publication of the NHS QIS investigation into the discovery of patient information at the disused Strathmartine Hospital in Tayside. The money will be used to help NHS boards meet a new data standard being issued by the Scottish Government today to board Chief Executives. This requires that mobile devices - such as laptops and memory sticks - that are used to store patient-identifiable data must be encrypted to a new common standard, and used only after specific authorisation. Last week's investigation report made a number of national recommendations on improving data security, which the government accepted in full. Today's new mobile data standard imposes even stricter regulations intended to protect patient privacy. Ms Sturgeon said: "I made it clear last week that patients deserve to know their information is secure with the NHS, and that the people who care for their health will also observe their right to confidentiality. "That's why we are issuing a new mobile data standard to health boards today, and providing boards with £1 million extra funding to help them meet it. "Health boards will now have to ensure that patient, staff or corporate records will only be stored on a mobile device when specifically authorised. Also, any mobile devices that hold patient information must be encrypted to a/new common standard. "This is a new benchmark for information security and should help patients rest assured that their details are in safer hands." Although primarily intended to ensure the security of laptops and USB memory sticks, the new standard applies equally to other mobile devices such as PDAs, CDs, BlackBerries or DVDs. The standard has been produced following consultation with Board IT and security experts. The investment comes from the Scottish Government's eHealth budget. http://www.scotland.gov.uk |
