VICTORIA – Island Health, the health authority on Vancouver Island, says an employee who had nothing to do with the care of 39 patients accessed their health records out of curiosity about friends or neighbours.

Suzanne Germain, a spokesperson with Island Health, told The Province newspaper that an investigation began last November when it emerged that a longtime worker was looking at confidential information.

While privacy legislation prevents Island Health from discussing the specifics of employment matters, the authority confirmed that the employee no longer works for Island Health.

A separate and unrelated privacy breach by two other employees that came to light last October involved 112 patients whose records were accessed.

Due to concerns about access to patient records, Island Health is developing a new learning module about the organizations Privacy Code, which all employees will be required to complete once a year.

After successfully completing a quiz demonstrating knowledge of their responsibilities around privacy and confidentiality, each individual associated with Island Health will sign a commitment to appropriately manage confidential information. This new learning module will be rolled out this summer.