TeleNurse30

YES...a code was called, but the patient did have a pulse. Just stopped breathing. Code team got her stable and was going to send her to ICU, but while waiting for a bed and monitoring her, the docs decided she was fine and was able to stay on our tele floor. Why do you find this so odd?

No, she was not caring for the person. She was not charge that day, she had nothing to do with said patient. She was just trying to see if the patient had been overmedicated or any other errors were made, etc. She is the type who gets involved in other nurse's business, if you know what I mean. It seems, every department has one like this!

Before I contact the HIPAA officer at my facility, I would like some of your opinions. Is it a violation of HIPAA for an employee who was not involved with a patient who coded, and not even working on that day, to look up the medications that were given prior to the code via the pyxis, just to "see what went on", when she came into work two days later? BTW, the patient ended up being okay and didn't even have to leave the floor.