NHS trust suspends or removes 10 people amid concerns over Noah Woods medical records

Ten people have been suspended or removed from direct active duty by East Suffolk and North Essex NHS Foundation Trust amid concerns that the medical records of three-year-old Noah Woods may have been viewed inappropriately.

The trust said it had launched an urgent internal investigation and apologised unreservedly to Noah’s family.

Noah was found dead in a lake on September 16, a day after going missing in Brantham, Suffolk. His inquest heard on Friday that he had left an under-fives play area and become separated from the relative who was with him on September 15.

Around 1,300 members of the public joined the search for Noah. Metropolitan Police divers recovered his body from a lake known locally as Decoy Pond on the afternoon of September 16. His inquest was opened and then adjourned to a date to be fixed.

Dr Martin Mansfield, deputy chief medical officer and the senior person responsible for health and care information at the trust, said immediate steps had been taken to secure Noah’s records and prevent access that was not for a legitimate clinical reason.

“Any unauthorised access of patient data is completely unacceptable,” Dr Mansfield said. He added that the trust had reported the matter to the Information Commissioner’s Office and would keep Noah’s family informed as the investigation progressed.

An Esneft spokesman said: “Ten people working at the trust have been removed from direct active duty or suspended pending further investigation.”

The Information Commissioner’s Office said it was making enquiries with East Suffolk and North Essex NHS Foundation Trust. An ICO spokesman said knowingly or recklessly accessing patient data without authorisation was against the law and could result in professional and criminal sanctions.

The spokesman said a series of recent high-profile incidents involving unauthorised access to patient records was “painting an extremely worrying picture”.

NHS England chief executive Sir Jim Mackey said patient records contained “some of the most private information people will ever share”. He said people who accessed records out of curiosity could lose their careers and potentially receive a criminal record.

Noah’s family said through Suffolk Police that he was a “happy, cheeky, playful three-year-old boy” who loved to laugh and brought joy wherever he went.

They said Noah was being assessed for autism but had not received a diagnosis. He also had mild hearing loss and was speech delayed, they said.