I am a nursing student in a RN program. I was doing clinical at one of the local hospitals recently. I was summoned to a meeting with the dean of nursing at my college to discuss an issue that was brought to her attention by this hospital. Apparently the hospital claims that I posted patient information to my Facebook account, which I had not done. I asked the dean of nursing what proof the hospital had provided to support their claim that I broke HIPPA. The dean said that she asked the hospital for proof, but they said they could not provide any. To show that I had nothing to hide, I let the dean go through my Facebook page where she found no wrong doing on my part. After this, she said the hospital provided one bit of information from my Facebook page. It was a status update from October where I mentioned I had bipolar disorder. The hospital has banned me from ever doing clinical at their site again, and I'm guessing I can pretty much rule that hospital out as a future employer, as well as any of their local clinics.
Now, to me, this seems like a blatant case of discrimination based on my mental health status, and many others feel the same way.
Now, my question is, what should I do about this?
My father talked to a local nurse who said this could become a big problem for me even outside of this particular hospital. She said I should write a response to their claims, and demand that it be placed in my personnel file at this hospital. I don't know if that is the right path to take or not.
I don't want to be labeled as a person that broke HIPPA policy, but I also don't want to be discriminated against in the future do to my mental health status.
I wouldn't be so quick to decide that the student has absolutely no rights. There is, after all, some sort of contractual obligation on the part of both the facility and the school. And the school has some obligations toward its students. You need a good, competent, aggressive attorney to go to bat for you. It ain't over til its over.
He could claim that the school failed him by not preparing him adequately for safeguarding his reputation and history, for not specifically educating him about the perils of posting on the web - a good lawyer will come up with some challenges.
Fight back, James, and good luck, Dude.
my problem, and why i think he/she should "fight" back is ...he has been labled a law breaker.....and he didnt....if they really didnt want him there d/t his bipolar....they should have taken a little time and thought and come up with something else......i would like to see the school address this and see if the comment was misinterpreted...
What did they ban you for? The HIPPA or the bipolar. I certainly would make sure that I knew. Isn't there an HIPPA person in the hospital that has to follow a paper trail. If the hospital accused you they are liable for the fines. I am sure that there is paper somewhere?? Ask for it.
did you read the article to the side of the page?? New HIPPA laws may protect you in this case. A pt will have to be notified if a hippa violation happened.
What about the state nursing board?? I mean before you pay a lawyer, have the state nursing board and the HIPPA compliance committee do the work for you.
While I've never heard of a hospital charging a school for student clinicals, what I was referring to specifically as not allowed was the cutting back on staffing because of the presence of students. That is a strict no-no everywhere I've ever been.
I can tell you with 100% certainty that this is unofficially done on my unit.
As others have stated, it is probably a good idea to at least speak to a lawyer. There would seem to be the possibility of a case for false accusation resulting in defamation of character and depending on how the hospital-school contract is written, discrimination as well. Either way, the lawyer, not a bunch of nurses (no offense meant to anyone...although I doubt not being called a lawyer will offend anyone :wink2:) would be the best person to advise you on your legal rights and course of action. They can probably also give the best advice in relation to how this accusation by the hospital can and cannot be (legally...never know what might actually happen) used against you in the future and how to guard against that. Good luck!
Specializes in Peds/outpatient FP,derm,allergy/private duty.
many warning have been given on this site, to not "**** off" any other nurse......the word gets around.....the fact that the OP wasnt allowed to finish clinical is going to be pretty well known also.....and the b%$((d that did it in the first place is still "out there" and free to do it again....
I agree with this, too. Also think that Jeanne had the right idea as far as James online comment that as he remembers it "bipolar can really make NS difficult". The hospital accused him of violating a patient's privacy. Was the patient they were referring to HIM? If so, that makes no sense. It doesn't make sense that they would see that word on his Facebook and kick him out of their hospital no questions asked when he states he does very well in clinical. I don't think he posted some horrible secret (being bipolar) that they pounced on and based on the vague reference booted him out.
I understand what everyone is saying about accept this and move on. If they kicked him out because he has bipolar and he doesn't want to pursue it legally, then fine. However, if they kicked him out because they erroneously thought, or misinterpreted his comment to mean a patient with the diagnosis of bipolar makes NS difficult, if it were me, there's no way in hell I would let it stand. If I was unjustly accused of stealing a piece of bubble gum, I'd want to clear that up, too!
Is this so beyond the realm of possibility that the Dean of the School could meet with James and a rep from the hospital to connect the missing dots so he doesn't have to guess about what happened?
Wish you well, James. I hope you weren't dismissed from the hosp. 'cause you wrote something about yourself like that on your FB. Lots and lots of nurses struggle with that issue on a daily basis. You shouldn't be punished for that when everything else with school is going so well for you. :)
A lot of interesting comments here. Unless you want to work at that hospital, I'd look for work elsewhere. It is definitely their loss, because from all of your comments, you sound like a conscientious, thoughtful person.
If you decide not to discuss your options with a lawyer, I would definitely at least get a statement from your dean in writing. That way if this ever comes up in the future, you have the documentation proving that you did no wrong. You don't want to be in a situation where all you can say is that your dean agreed with you way back when. Also, I would start researching policies concerning mental health issues and employment so that you can avoid any messes in the future. I applaud you for being honest about who you are, I think it's healthy. However, when you're actually trying to get a job, the stakes are much higher and you will want to know the fullness of your rights.
such a good point! get a letter from the dean! i am still at a loss why put that you are bipolar on facebook. I have nothing against mental illness, but I think facebook is a bad place to let that knowledge out there.
Well, that is a good point. I guess if I were in this situation, I would consult a lawyer. Especially since James is being accused of something that the hospital doesn't even have evidence for. There has got to be some kind of legal intervention if this hospital does tell another hospital about their dealings with James. Isn't that slander if the original hospital doesn't even have proof on the "HIPPA violation". I would think that James could sue if the original hospital if they told other hospitals only because their accusation is unsubstantiated.
Morte, do you really think that one hospital administration would forwarn other hospitals? Why would they care? These other hospitals are their competition, why help them out? But I am sure that the nurse recruiters from the various hospitals know each other or network. Or you think others would spread it around to nurse recruitment?
Curious,
Jeanne
Juicy stuff travels around the nursing community. I was made aware of this one time at a job interview when some things were said about my former Director of Nurses which were not appropriate for a job interview. Scary.
morte, LPN, LVN
7,015 Posts
my problem, and why i think he/she should "fight" back is ...he has been labled a law breaker.....and he didnt....if they really didnt want him there d/t his bipolar....they should have taken a little time and thought and come up with something else......i would like to see the school address this and see if the comment was misinterpreted...