NHS to suspend staff suspected of snooping on patient records

NHS staff in England suspected of looking at patient records without a valid reason will be immediately suspended as part of a "zero-tolerance crackdown" on snooping.

Those under suspicion will also be locked out of NHS computer systems, preventing any further viewing of confidential records, including from home.

NHS England chief executive Sir Jim Mackey has written to every trust, ordering the measures to be introduced immediately to strengthen protection against data breaches.

The move follows a series of high-profile incidents involving the records of Nottingham and Southport attack victims and a child who was injured in a crocodile enclosure in Cambridgeshire .

This week, Bristol Foundation NHS Trust said it had launched an internal investigation after it emerged the medical records of an 18-year-old had been accessed years after his death .

The boy's mother, Paula McGowan, told the BBC she was "deeply concerned and hurt" and called for the NHS to do more to deal with the problem.

The NHS said the "hardline" approach is part of a wider crackdown, including the launch of a national campaign to "remind staff of their responsibilities and the serious consequences of unlawful access".

"Patient records contain some of the most private information people will ever share," said NHS England's chief executive Sir Jim Mackey.