More than 5,000 patients will be horrified to learn that their personal and medical details may have been on a computer memory stick taken from Bradford Teaching Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust premises and subsequently lost.

It is understood that the staff member responsible has resigned, no doubt realising the gravity of her error.

And the Trust itself has been quick to write to any patients who may have been affected, to warn them and apologise for the situation.

In addition, its chief executive, Miles Scott, says an investigation is under way and the Trust is determined to do all it can to ensure such a mistake does not happen again.

While the reaction to this matter has been both swift and comprehensive, it is nothing more than the public deserve.

For when we hand over our personal details to public servants, we do so with the reasonable expectation that they will guard them as we do.

When this proves not to be the case, we expect the matter to be taken seriously.

There are still many questions unanswered, such as whether this data was password protected, was access to it restricted and was it encrypted – and if not, why not?

The Trust must now complete its inquiries quickly and thoroughly and make its findings public – together with its plan of action.

For there is no doubt that people’s confidence will have been severely damaged by this episode, and while this will not restore it, it will at least be a start.