THE ASAHI SHIMBUN
May 18, 2022 at 16:58 JST
Fuchu Hospital in Izumi, Osaka Prefecture (Asahi Shimbun file photo)
Doctors at five hospitals across the nation provided videos of surgeries they performed to a medical equipment sales company without the consent of their patients and employers.
The government’s Personal Information Protection Commission is investigating the practice as a possible violation of the Personal Information Protection Law, which requires medical institutions to properly manage information that can identify patients.
The law prohibits businesses from using personal information for purposes other than the original intent unless they have obtained the consent of the individuals.
“The videos were not intended to be provided to a third party for research purposes, so, in theory, that would require the consent of the patients,” said Yosuke Minami, a lawyer well-versed in legal provisions on protecting personal information in medicine.
The case involves five doctors who each work at separate medical institutions: Obihiro Hospital in Obihiro, Hokkaido; Saishukan Hospital in Kita-Nagoya, Aichi Prefecture; JA Hiroshima General Hospital in Hatsukaichi, Hiroshima Prefecture; Japanese Red Cross Fukui Hospital in Fukui; and Fuchu Hospital in Izumi, Osaka Prefecture.
The physicians provided videos of surgeries for cataracts and other ailments to Staar Japan Inc., a company based in Urayasu, Chiba Prefecture, which sells medical equipment.
Staar Japan released a statement that said it was collecting the videos to create instructional teaching materials for using intraocular lenses.
“We apologize for causing concern and trouble to health care workers, patients and their families,” the company said in its statement.
According to the Japanese Red Cross Fukui Hospital, its doctor provided videos of about 200 surgeries over two years starting in 2019 at the firm’s request. The hospital said the videos did not contain the patients’ names, addresses or other information that could identify them.
The hospital pledged to review its information management practices and train its employees to ensure its staff become better at protecting personal information.
In a statement published on its website, Obihiro Hospital apologized for a lack of oversight.
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