Twenty employees of a Florida hospital have been fired for violating the privacy of Richard Collier, the Jacksonville Jaguars offensive lineman who was shot on September 2.The employees, who include nurses, admissions workers and patient relations staff at Shands-Jacksonville Medical Center, were accused of breaking federal privacy rules by snooping at Collier's medical records.
Channel 4 news in Jacksonville reports that the employees were fired for violating the Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act, which is designed to protect patients medical records.
The hospital released this statement:
"Any allegation of a breach in patient confidentiality is taken very seriously. All allegations are investigated thoroughly. If it has been determined that a violation has occurred, disciplinary action up to and including termination can be used. In order to maintain patient confidentiality we do not comment on any specific cases."Collier was rushed to Shands after he was shot 14 times. He spent two weeks in the trauma center and left the hospital paralyzed from the waist down.
Reader Comments (Page 1 of 1)
11-02-2008 @ 1:28PM
mandy said...
As a nurse, it is well known in the medical community that if you are not taking care of the patient, then it is NONE of your business as to what is going on with them. I hope the Board of Nursing is notified of these violations, good for the hospital for doing the terminations!
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11-02-2008 @ 2:56PM
Penny said...
As an ER nurse for 12 years, I have had the opportunity to care for some very famous people. I have never released any of their info, or even told my family that I cared for them. I hope those so called professionals never work in an acute care setting ever again.
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11-02-2008 @ 4:03PM
LISA said...
I am a Registered Nurse and I say KUDOS to the hospital for doing what is legally and morally right! My prayers are with him and his family during his recovery.
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11-02-2008 @ 6:03PM
Mimi said...
A celebrity athlete of my acquaintance had his privacy violated when he was hospitalized. An orderly [for money] even allowed a photographer [paparazzi] to come into the athlete's room to photograph him while he was suffering. Fortunately, relatives noticed the guy, and alerted hospital security. The camera was confiscated and the offending pictures deleted.
But celebrity records are compromised all the time! The information is sometimes sold to tabloids. It's up to the hospitals to have controls and regulations in place. Just because a person is famous, there is no excuse for violating privacy, and offenders should be fired.
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