The Information Commissioner's Office (ICO) has powers to fine organisations up to £500,000 for data protection breaches.

Here are some examples of recent fines received by the NHS:

• The ICO fined NHS Surrey for failing to check the destruction of old computers
• A fax blunder led to a £55,000 penalty for a Staffordshire NHS trust
• The ICO imposed a monetary penalty of £100,000 after the discovery of a large number of patient records at a site formerly owned by Stockport Primary Care Trust

Information governance training is mandatory for all NHS staff.

The training session covers:

• data protection
• patient confidentiality
• information security
• records management computers
• Caldicott

• Register now