Nurse Recruiter and HIPAA violation?

[SookieBSN]

Hello group! This is my first post on AN so bear with me!

So...I have been applying for a nursing position at a hospital less than a mile from my house since 2009. I have never received so much as a response from human resources. So about a month ago, I felt the initiative to call the nurse recruiter and get an idea of how I could improve my resume/application. During our conversation, the nurse recruiter let slip that she didn't think I could handle a nursing position due to "my numerous ER visits." I contacted Risk Management at the hospital and they confirmed that this nurse recruiter had in fact accessed my medical record four times. The lady at risk management said she would "take care of it." As of yesterday, the nurse recruiter is still in her current position. I feel completely violated. Is there no privacy anymore?

So my questions is: Should I continue to pursue this through other means...i.e. reporting this as a HIPAA violation? Risk Management is no longer returning my phone calls.

Thank you, Sookie

[JustBeachyNurse, LPN]

File a complaint with the Hipaa compliance officer for the facility. It may or may not be risk management.

[PacoUSA, BSN, RN]

Yes, I would definitely report that as a HIPAA violation. She had no right to access your medical file for this information, she had no business accessing that. I hope you have a paper trail. Sounds like a good lawsuit too.

Sent from my iPad using allnurses

[Seaofclouds, BSN, RN]

I agree with the others, report it as a HIPAA violation.

[Anonymous865]

You can file a HIPAA complaint directly with the Office of Civil Rights, and you can be certain that it will be investigated.

You can file via web, email, fax, or snail mail. Here's the link on how to file:

How To File a Complaint

Of course if you do, you can probably give up the idea of ever getting a job there. You are legally protected from retaliation, but they can always come up with a reason not to offer someone a job.

If no one is returning your calls, you could mention that you will be contacting the Office of Civil Rights if you don't get a response from them.

Frankly, I hope you do get nasty with them. If this recruiter has been looking up your medical records, I guarantee she has done it to lots of others.

Clearly the facility doesn't have appropriate controls in place, so they are guilty too. There is no reason a recruiter should have access to any medical records.

[OrganizedChaos, LVN]

I wouldn't want to work there. If they don't have that HR lady in control, imagine the rest of the place.

[JustKeepSmiling, ADN, BSN, RN]

OMG!!!!!! I would be so infuriated!!! Lawyer up?!?

[jadelpn, LPN, EMT-B]

If you go onto the parent company website of the facility, there is a compliance/ethics complaint you can file at the corporate level.

For the risk manager to admit that your medical record was accessed 4 times is not the best thing that he/she should have told you as well as the obviously outrageous nurse recruiter making that statement.

This also speaks to the fact that you can not be denied employment for certain medical conditions/medical history--you could also be talking about a protected class.

Make sure that you did not sign a consent as part of your application which gives the facility "rights" to use whatever information they deem necessary to see if you are a candidate for employment. Sometimes the fine print of the application for employment will give rights to information. I am not saying that this is the case, however, it could be.

I would speak directly with a compliance officer at the corporate level of the parent company.

Let us know how it goes.

[dudette10, MSN, RN]

I am not litigious by any means, but this would infuriate me so much, that I would sue the pants off them.

Good luck.

[klone, MSN, RN]

Oh, I SO hope you contact an attorney and pursue this!

[KelRN215, BSN, RN]

This is not only a HIPAA violation but a violation of the Americans with Disabilities Act. I'd file a complaint with the Office of Civil Rights and the EEOC.

[dudette10, MSN, RN]

By the way, risk mgmt is no longer returning your calls because they know this was a royal screw up.