LUC and Department of Health

Application number:
1999 S0204
Decision date:
Wednesday, Jun 28, 2000

LUC and Royal Brisbane Hospital and District Health Service (Department of Health)
(1999 S0204, 28 June 2000) 

The applicant was a former patient of the Royal Brisbane Hospital who sought details of her file movements through the respondent agency, by way of a 'screen dump' from the electronic file tracking system used by the respondent.  The respondent was able to provide the applicant with recent information, but advised that its 'live' database was purged monthly and therefore only showed the most recent movements.  The applicant contended that some of the information she sought may have been contained on the respondent’s backup tapes. 

The Deputy Information Commissioner found, on the basis of the information provided by the respondent, that it would be a substantial and unreasonable diversion of the respondents resources to require the respondent to utilise a suitable platform to read the backup tapes, and then to search the tapes in order to locate any relevant information. The Deputy Information Commissioner therefore affirmed the respondent's decision, under s.28(2), to refuse to deal further with the applicant’s access application.