HIV records found in a courier bag in the street

Police are to be called in to investigate how the highly confidential papers were left in a motorbike bag close to Kingston Hospital.

Hospital chiefs are writing to patients whose personal test results, which included in some cases their names, dates of birth, GP details and NHS number, were abandoned on a busy road.

MPs called for an independent investigation into the apparent major breach of personal data which is understood to include tests for sexual diseases and hepatitis, as well as details about individuals treated for schizophrenia, others attending addiction and conception clinics and women who had suffered miscarriages.

Shadow health secretary Andrew Lansley said: "This delivers yet another blow to patient confidence about the security of their personal information.

"It must be very distressing for the patients concerned. I urge the hospitals concerned to undertake an immediate investigation and present their measures for securing data."

The 173 documents, which included batches being sent to the Roehampton Clinic and also Queen Mary's Hospital, Roehampton, were found on Kingston Hill after lunchtime on Friday by a passer-by and handed to local paper The Surrey Comet.

A Kingston Hospital spokeswoman said: "We take the loss of any patient information very seriously, and all the patients involved will be written to personally offering sincere apologies. A full investigation is under way and it is likely that the police will be asked to assist."

However, Kingston and Surbiton Liberal Democrat MP Ed Davey called for outside experts to carry out an inquiry.

He said: "There needs to be an independent investigation with people external from the hospital to find out what went wrong.

"The potential intrusion on personal data of individual patients is alarming in the extreme. This shows yet again that the NHS and Government more widely do not seem to treat people's confidential information properly."

There has been a series of data protection scandals including the loss by Revenue and Customs of the details of 25 million people on two discs with information on child benefit.

Wandsworth Primary Care Trust, which is responsible for Queen Mary's Hospital, said: "Kingston Hospital made us aware of the incident and we are working with them...to make sure that this doesn't happen again."

A spokesman said: "We will contact Kingston PCT to establish how this occurred and to ensure systems are put in place to prevent this happening again."

Patients at Queen Mary's Hospital who had blood or urine tests between 28 December and 2 January, or had a biopsy sample taken last month with concerns about their records, can contact Kingston Hospital on 020 8934 3994 or Queen Mary's Hospital on 020 8487 6322.