Intern Doctor Arrested and Fired in Hong Kong for Unauthorized Patient Data Access

An intern doctor has been arrested by Hong Kong police on suspicion of accessing patient data without authorisation and fired from her hospital, according to an insider and medical authorities.

A source said the 24-year-old woman was arrested on Friday evening after allegedly accessing a computer with dishonest intent at Caritas Medical Centre in Sham Shui Po.

She was being detained for investigation, the insider added.

According to the source, the Hospital Authority had received an anonymous report alleging that a female intern used the login account and information of a doctor at Tuen Mun Hospital without authorisation during her work hours to access the computer system and browse patient records.

The authority said on Wednesday that it had reported the intern to police after suspending her and a resident doctor.

Officers verified the allegations with the authority and investigated the computer records, confirming that she had used another person’s account without authorisation on May 13 and 14 to log into the authority’s computer system at Caritas Medical Centre and browse patient information belonging to Tuen Mun Hospital, the source said.

The authority said on Friday that it had fired the intern who had violated medical ethics, infringed upon patient privacy and professional confidentiality, and failed to adhere to instructions when performing medical procedures.