YELLOWKNIFE (December 15, 2018) – After the Northwest Territories Health and Social Services Authority (NTHSSA) was made aware of a potential breach of health records, the Information and Privacy Commissioner of the Northwest Territories (IPC) was notified. The IPC initiated a review under the Health Information Act and has secured the return of the documents from the individual who had them in their possession. The individual turned the documents over to the RCMP. The NTHSSA has cooperated with the IPC and will continue to do so.

The files will be transported to Yellowknife immediately and RCMP will turn the files over to the Information and Privacy Commissioner. The NTHSSA will work with the IPC to determine who may be impacted and to begin notifying any individuals whose health records were breached. At the same time the NTHSSA will be working to investigate the cause of this incident with a focus on accountability, policy, and processes to ensure we can prevent further breaches.
The NTHSSA has also been diligently working to identify possible sources of these files and to confirm that secure file practices are in place in Fort Simpson and area.

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“This is a disturbing and evolving situation. Now that files are in secure possession, we will be working hard to identify their source, understand how this situation developed and take all action necessary to notify individuals whose private information has been breached. We commit to providing the public
with updates as more information becomes available regarding what has happened and our plan for addressing it.”

-Sue Cullen, CEO of the Northwest Territories Health and Social Services Authority (NTHSSA)

Media Contact

David Maguire
Manager, Communications
Northwest Territories Health and Social Services Authority
TEL: 867-767-9107 ext. 40150
EMAIL: david_maguire@gov.nt.ca