In a recent incident at SCB Medical College and Hospital (Cuttack), Odisha, a junior clerk has been arrested for allegedly selling decades-old hospital records to scrap dealers without institutional authorisation.
According to police, the clerk sold documents at ₹ 8 per kg, using forged orders purportedly from hospital authorities.
According to the report by TNIE, accused, identified as a junior clerk, Bikram Sahu was responsible for the record room of the hospital’s older outpatient (OPD) building.
The hospital was shifting furniture and equipment due to building repairs when the incident occurred. The clerk reportedly took advantage of the “holiday” second Saturday when fewer staff were present.
He approached two scrap dealers, K Mohan Rao and Ramesh Nayak and sold the records, claiming he had authority via forged orders from hospital administration. The dealers purchased the records without verifying with the hospital authorities.
Following an FIR by the hospital administration, police checked CCTV footage, located and apprehended the clerk at his home in Jagatpur, and arrested the two scrap dealers. The recovered materials included sensitive hospital records.
The hospital registrar indicated that the clerk would be suspended if he remains in custody beyond 24 hours.
Although the hospital had plans to digitise records after an announcement in 2018 about introducing electronic health records, the process has been delayed for years.
Even three years after the decision, the digitisation project had not yet commenced.
Digitising medical records (i.e., converting paper files into searchable electronic form) offers advantages such as easier access, better security, and long-term preservation. Its delay means many files remain in paper form and vulnerable.
The hospital’s Medical Record Department reportedly houses records dating back more than four decades.
Earlier calamities, such as the 1999 super-cyclone and a fire in April 2019 have destroyed or damaged many earlier records.
When records are physical and unorganised:
Retrieval of patient history, prior treatments, lab results becomes time-consuming.
Risks of loss, damage, unauthorised access or disposal increase.
For hospitals handling large caseloads (like SCB MCH), inefficiencies may impact continuity of care.
In this incident, the sale of old records indicates a breach in chain-of-custody and institutional oversight over archival materials.
(Rh/TL/MSM)