Children's Health Ireland (CHI) has been found to be in breach of data protection rules over the storage of children’s health records within a CHI facility at Tallaght University Hospital.
The Data Protection Commission (DPC) launched an investigation in August 2025 after it carried out an unannounced site inspection at the facility following the receipt of protected disclosures.
It is understood a number of children's patient records were stored in a room at the facility that was not locked and could easily be accessed by anyone in the building.
As part of the protected disclosure process, the DPC said it also became aware that documents containing both sensitive and special category data of children had been over-flowing, and subsequently removed, from a confidential waste bin.
"This bin was located beside the door to the Non-Consultant Hospital Doctor’s (NCHD) office at CHI," the DPC said.
CHI at Tallaght was found to be in breach of the General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) for failing to ensure that personal information was processed in a manner which ensured the appropriate security and confidentiality of the data.
CHI has been issued with a reprimand and ordered to bring its processing of personal data into compliance with the GDPR.
