Another nurse bites the dust due to facebook

[siringe]

I don't know the woman in question, yet news reports acknowledge that facebook has caused another job termination casualty in the nursing community. I know there are numerous posts regarding this topic, yet I figure sharing this may help someone think twice when placing job/career related postings on facebook no matter how private you think your posts are!Follow the link to see why. What would you do?

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[klone, MSN, RN]

Do I think she deserved to be fired over what she did?? No, not really. I think it was a pretty harsh punishment. It's not like she named him or anything like that. I understand completely that it was a HIPAA violation, but I think people tend to go overboard with that stuff sometimes. JMO.

Wow, I just don't understand the reasoning behind this opinion. She broke the law. Not only can she be fired, but she can also face jail time and having her nursing license taken away.

I see so many things wrong with what she did - it doesn't matter if she didn't name names. If she gave enough identifying information about a person so that anyone could figure out who he was, she committed a HIPAA violation. She also called him a "cop killer" (what happened to innocent until proven guilty? I think that right there might be grounds for an appeal), and she apparently made very disparaging remarks about him, which calls into question whether or not she can provide unbiased care to this person. As a representative of the hospital, she made the hospital look VERY BAD and I think they were totally within their rights to fire her.

[kbrn2002, ADN, RN]

Most people I know are on some sort of social networking site, usually FaceBook. I am "friends" with several co-workers and see some posts that are less than flattering to my employer. I cringe every time and hope that management doesn't find a reason to get rid of the poster. I have even seen threads at AN that refer to my employer and wouldn't post on them for love nor money! As for the nurse that lost her job over that post, she needs to consider that a very expensive lesson learned and be thankful it is only her job she lost. While we should all be a allowed to vent, remember you are venting in a public place and be very, very careful. She wasn't careful, she clearly violated HIPAA and she put her facility at risk for a law suit. She is lucky she was only fired.

[kenni]

OMG this has NOTHING to do with HIPAA! (that's how it's spelled BTW) she did not disclose any personal or health information about the guy, she didn't mention the facility or anything. all she posted was her personal feelings about the situation. some ppl are a little more bold about what they post, but that's her discretion. if she gets an attorney she WILL win, despite what anyone thinks.

[ToxicShock]

I don't mean this to sound snotty, but because of how strict the HIPAA laws are, what situations are you allowed to talk about patients in? Amongst only certain co-workers? Can you talk about pts with a priest or therapist?

[grish]

Venting is essential in our line of work. What we have to protect is a pt's identity.

[Angelfire3]

T.. I play my Farmville and that's it.

ME TOO! What level are you on? Do you have cafe' world & mall world too? Sorry OP for going off topic. FB games are the

[Ruby Vee, BSN]

i don't know the woman in question, yet news reports acknowledge that facebook has caused another job termination casualty in the nursing community. i know there are numerous posts regarding this topic, yet i figure sharing this may help someone think twice when placing job/career related postings on facebook no matter how private you think your posts are!follow the link to see why. what would you do?

http://www.myfoxdetroit.com/dpp/news/local/oakwood-hospital-employee-fired-for-facebook-posting-20100730-wpms

another nurse didn't bite the dust due to facebook; she bit the dust due to being stupid on line.

[msbfree]

I really feel that forums even this one should be used with the utmost discretion. The information displayed by someone here on this site which mentions "state of Texas " is taking it for granted that another state employee may not be able to identify that message.. Be carefull, not for the sake of lossing your right to speak your voice. But in some unfortunate turn of events that these site may become the weapon used against you to prove you have broken privacy requirements.

[nursel56]

What I find strange is that when the employee is quoted, it is spelled HIPPA:mad: , and when the hospital is quoted it is spelled HIPAA :)

[belgarion]

Addressing the question regarding talking about a patient to a priest, ANYTHING said in a confessional is is supposedly the most confidential information imaginable. Priests are not allowed to break that confidentialiy under pain of excommunication. So if you talk about a patient to a priest and get in trouble for it, it was probably your own big mouth that blabbed about it. Other denominations may not be so strict. Bottom line, why take the chance?

[Ruby Vee, BSN]

addressing the question regarding talking about a patient to a priest, anything said in a confessional is is supposedly the most confidential information imaginable. priests are not allowed to break that confidentialiy under pain of excommunication. so if you talk about a patient to a priest and get in trouble for it, it was probably your own big mouth that blabbed about it. other denominations may not be so strict. bottom line, why take the chance?

everything i tell my personal physician is confidential as well. so i told her about the patient we had upstairs on the ventilator for a year as first one body part and then another turned black and rotted off, his kidneys failed, he stroked and laid there in excrutiating pain as his skin was sloughing off mouthing "i want to die! please let me die!" around the ett while the surgeon kept assuring his parents that "we can improve his condition and at least he'll be alive." i told her about the surgeon who can never let his patients go, or turn them over to someone else because they might not "save them." and then i told her that maybe anti-depressants weren't such a bad idea after all.

had i seen her at a cocktail party -- which is possible since we know her husband as well -- i couldn't tell her any of this, but as my physician it's a protected communication.

[cloudwatcher]

How do you know that she is a nurse?? It does not say that anywhere in the article, she could have been a receptionist or anything else at that hospital.... :uhoh3::uhoh3::uhoh3::uhoh3: