Chiropodist suspended for taking patient records from hospital

A CHIROPODIST has been suspended after taking more than 700 confidential patient records out of hospital grounds.

Dylan W Williams, who worked at Neath Port Talbot Hospital, also changed dates on patient records and failed to complete their notes.

He has now been suspended from the Health and Care Professions Council (HCPC) for 12 months on the grounds of misconduct.

Abertawe Bro Morgannwg University (ABMU) Health Board said it investigated the matter and dismissed the employee in 2015.

Sarah Baalham, panel chairman of the HCPC Conduct and Competence Committee, which held a hearing in Cardiff between January 9 and 12, said: “There is no evidence that Mr Williams’ misconduct and dishonesty resulted in patient harm.

“However, because of the nature of the patients that he treated, there was the potential that his actions could have resulted in a patient being at risk of serious harm because up-to-date patient records were not available to other treating clinicians.”

The panel heard that Mr Williams removed 737 “patient identifiable paper records” from the hospital and stored them outside NHS Wales premises. He also altered the date stamp on records that he had completed retrospectively by unplugging the network cable and amending the dates on the document.

The panel found Mr Williams to have “underlying and serious health issues” which demonstrably had a “significant impact upon his ability to work within normal record-keeping methods and practice”.

But it was discovered that steps had been put in place to help him make contemporaneous or retrospective notes within 24 hours of an appointment taking place, including dictation software and extra time within each appointment.

A spokeswoman for ABMU Health Board said: “We can confirm that Mr Williams was dismissed in 2015.”