Dr Sanjoy Kumar, Grace O’Malley-Kumar’s father, expressed his outrage at the breaches. “I am appalled, it’s time to get a handle on these failures,” he said.
He went further, describing the situation as voyeuristic misconduct. “Clearly, the way that the highest confidential data, which is medical data, is being looked at by voyeuristic people in the NHS is disgraceful,” Dr Kumar added.
Dr Manjeet Shehmar, the trust’s medical director, issued an apology to the families and a warning to staff. “There is simply no excuse for accessing the records of a patient without a legitimate reason and I hope this sends a really clear message we will investigate and we will take action,” he stated.
He acknowledged the additional trauma caused to the bereaved families. “To lose a loved one in the way that the families of Ian, Grace and Barnaby have is heartbreaking enough. I am so sorry that they have had this further compounded by the actions of these staff members,” Dr Shehmar said.