Ten NHS staff removed from duty over snooping on medical records of Noah Woods, 3
East Suffolk and North Essex NHS Foundation Trust has removed ten employees from duty after an audit found Noah Woods' medical records were accessed without authorisation following his death in Suffolk.
Ten NHS employees were removed from duty after the medical records of Noah Woods, three, were accessed without authorisation, The Sun on Sunday revealed.
East Suffolk and North Essex NHS Foundation Trust launched an internal investigation after concerns were raised that staff had tried to access his private patient data. The investigation began on 17 September because the case was so high profile, with the Trust’s information governance team auditing the main electronic patient record system from 5.30pm on 15 September, when his disappearance was announced, to the night of 16 September, when police confirmed his death. The Trust is understood to be probing its other systems too, as Noah had been treated there before.
Dr Martin Mansfield, the Trust’s Deputy Chief Medical Officer, said any unauthorised patient data access was “completely unacceptable”. The Trust had “apologised unreservedly to Noah’s family for the extra anguish this breach of trust has caused them at an already devastating time”, he said, saying the matter had been reported to the Information Commissioner’s Office. “We will take disciplinary action where needed,” he said.
The disclosure follows NHS England chief executive Sir Jim Mackey’s vow to sack or take legal action against NHS snoopers, after he wrote to hospital bosses that “enough is enough”.
Noah, who was non-verbal and awaiting autism assessment, was found dead in Decoy Pond in Brantham about 24 hours after leaving a playground through a gap in its fence. An inquest opened and adjourned last week.
Sources
- The Sun, “Ten NHS staff removed from duty after medical records of tragic Noah Woods, 3, were accessed following his disappearance” — https://www.thesun.co.uk/news/40504646/nhs-staff-snoop-noah-woods-medical-records/
- The Scottish Sun (same report, mirror) — https://www.thescottishsun.co.uk/news/16868489/nhs-staff-snoop-noah-woods-medical-records/
- Classic FM, “NHS staff face immediate suspension for ‘snooping’ on patient medical data” (Sir Jim Mackey letter, 25 Sept 2026) — https://www.classicfm.com/radio/news/uk-world/nhs-staff-face-immediate-suspension-for-snoop/
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