Is this a HIPAA violation

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I have a friend that is pretty sure a Hippa violation happened to her. She was getting ready to go to college last year and two days before she was going she got a shot of Rocephin IM for a sinus infection. She went into anaphlactic shock and almost died. She was in the hospital in her home town for 4 days. She had a very hard time and was diagnosed with PTSD. In May she was admitted to the hospital in the town where her college is for depression narcotic addiction. She was in there a week and with counseling has done awesome. That month she moved into an apartment where she met a girl that lived upstairs. They were friends until my friend moved out of that apartment and into the soriety house. This girl that lived upstairs didn't like my friend anymore since she joined the soriety. For the next six months this girl was real mean to my friend when ever she saw her. This girl worked at the same hospital my friend was hospitilzed for the depression. This girl was always calling my friend and text messaging her that she was going to tell everyone why she was in the hospital. My friend was scared because she didn't want anyone to know. About a month ago this girl was at the same club as my friend and followed her into the bathroom. She grabbed my friend around the neck and said "I'm going to tell everyone why you were in the hospital b---and everyone will know you are psycho and a drug addict. You can't get me in trouble and will have no proof i've told anyone." My friend went to the police station and reported the assault. They said this girl just committed a big Hippa violation and wanted her to talk to the people at the hospital. She is scared and doesn't know what to do. She said when she was friends with this girl that she would always tell her why patients were admitted there and would have charts of different patients at her apartment. At the time she didn't know why this girl would have them since she isn't a nursing student. Anyway, my friend doesn't know what to do. Is this a Hippa violation?

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Specializes in Med/Surg, ER, L&D, ICU, OR, Educator.

At the very LEAST!

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I have a friend that is pretty sure a Hippa violation happened to her. She was getting ready to go to college last year and two days before she was going she got a shot of Rocephin IM for a sinus infection. She went into anaphlactic shock and almost died. She was in the hospital in her home town for 4 days. She had a very hard time and was diagnosed with PTSD. In May she was admitted to the hospital in the town where her college is for depression narcotic addiction. She was in there a week and with counseling has done awesome. That month she moved into an apartment where she met a girl that lived upstairs. They were friends until my friend moved out of that apartment and into the soriety house. This girl that lived upstairs didn't like my friend anymore since she joined the soriety. For the next six months this girl was real mean to my friend when ever she saw her. This girl worked at the same hospital my friend was hospitilzed for the depression. This girl was always calling my friend and text messaging her that she was going to tell everyone why she was in the hospital. My friend was scared because she didn't want anyone to know. About a month ago this girl was at the same club as my friend and followed her into the bathroom. She grabbed my friend around the neck and said "I'm going to tell everyone why you were in the hospital b---and everyone will know you are psycho and a drug addict. You can't get me in trouble and will have no proof i've told anyone." My friend went to the police station and reported the assault. They said this girl just committed a big Hippa violation and wanted her to talk to the people at the hospital. She is scared and doesn't know what to do. She said when she was friends with this girl that she would always tell her why patients were admitted there and would have charts of different patients at her apartment. At the time she didn't know why this girl would have them since she isn't a nursing student. Anyway, my friend doesn't know what to do. Is this a Hippa violation?

Yes, she is violating HIPPA. Irregardless of how she came across patient information/charts, she HAS ABSOLUTELY NO BUSINESS relaying information regarding patients or their hospitalization. She certainly has no business trying to use that information to threaten and intimidate.

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Specializes in Ante-Intra-Postpartum, Post Gyne.

In the worst way possible, this is the clearest hippa violation I have ever heard of. Maybe your friend should turn the tables...Personal hippa fines can be up to fifty thousand dollars...

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divulging information without permission is a BIG HIPPA VIOLATION!!!:angryfire especially when someone is taking patient's chart in their home:banghead: :nono:

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i'm a rn student, not a nurse YET, but the whole situation seems "bizarre" to me????

she can call the state board of nursing in her state and report it?

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Specializes in Med-surg, LTC, learning Psych.

YUP!!!!!! It's a violation and illegal. And you should tell your friend to report it. Did she save any of the written/text messaged stuff? If she did, she needs to take that to them, too.

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Specializes in Orthosurgery, Rehab, Homecare.

Also, if your friend never told this girl why she was there and the girl found out by looking in her record that is a violation (if she wasn't treating her). In my facility this is a fireable offence.

~Jen

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Can't help this... it's just a pet peeve of mine.

It's HIPAA, not HIPPA. :)

Ok carry on!

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Yes, it is a HIPAA violation! I would definitely have her contact the state board of nursing to report it.

If your friend did not save the text messages, maybe the cell phone company somehow has a record of this on a large server. Or possibly the messages are stored on some chip in the phone???? I have no idea if this is the case, but I would look into it.

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I'll probably get a lot of people to disagree with me are parts of your story agains hippa absolutly. But about you specifically I think maybe not. If your ex-friend, ex-roomate ( pshyco person ) got the information strictly from work then yes, but if part of being your friend and roomates this was common knowlege that she knew from living with you then I would say no. For instance if my best friend was trying to get pregant and taking fertility meds and she told me and i was talking about it with other people then I don't belive it would be a hippa violation becaue I did not get the information from my exposer to her medical record (or health information) however if she hadn't told me and I happend to read her chart at work either because she was a patinet I was taking care of or I had spyed on her than yes It would be. Granted as a "professional" she should know better and act more professional.

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Specializes in ER, NICU, NSY and some other stuff.

HMMMM I think this is yet another case of wishing for the proverbial 10 foot pole smiley.

There are more than a couple of statements in this post I find a bit over the top.

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