Henry County Health Department investigating possible exposure of patients records

The Henry County Health Department says hundreds of patient records may have been exposed after a nurse’s laptop computer and some paperwork was stolen. Records for up to 574 Henry County Health Department Home Health and Hospice patients were affected, according to information released by the health department Wednesday. The department stated that on Oct. 22, a health department nurse was the victim of a home invasion and her car was stolen from inside her locked garage. Inside her car were the laptop and paper records. Police have since apprehended the suspect and recovered the car, but the laptop and medical records were not found. The department said the stolen laptop contained patient information including names, dates of birth, Social Security numbers, phone numbers and medical diagnoses. Patients affected by the theft are being notified of the incident via mail.