Tyks Appointment Letters Sent to Wrong Recipients Due to Technical Error
The Wellbeing Services County of Southwest Finland (Varha) has confirmed that electronic appointment letters from Turku University Hospital (Tyks) were mistakenly sent to incorrect recipients on Wednesday, 8 July. The incident has prompted an investigation into the cause of the disruption, with sending of new electronic letters suspended until the issue is resolved.
Error Affects Approximately 140 Customers
Varha reports that the batch mailing included around 140 Tyks customers, though the error impacted only some of them (Yle). The misdirected letters contained sensitive health information, including details for appointments at departments such as neurology, the eye clinic, and radiotherapy. Social and health services, as well as elderly care, were not affected by the disruption (Ilta-Sanomat).
Strategy and Integration Director Antti Parpo stated that the cause of the error was a "technical, human, code-related programming error" (Yle). Varha has since reported the incident to the Data Protection Ombudsman, emphasizing transparency in handling the matter.
"We handle this matter openly and do not wish to conceal our mistakes at this point. We apologize; this should not have happened," Parpo said (Yle).
No Appointments Wasted, Customers Contacted
Varha has begun contacting affected customers by phone to ensure they receive the correct information. Parpo confirmed that no appointments were wasted due to the error, as most of the disrupted letters pertained to reception times approximately two weeks away (Yle).
While the sending of new electronic letters has resumed, incorrect letters may still arrive by postal mail next week. Varha has instructed recipients to dispose of any misdirected letters in a data-secure manner (Yle).
Customers who received an appointment letter intended for another person are advised to contact Varha’s registry office at kirjaamo@varha.fi (Ilta-Sanomat). The county’s data protection team is also in direct contact with individuals whose personal information was compromised (Ilta-Sanomat).