I was recently terminated for a hipaa violation. I do not believe it was a hipaa violation and I need some advice and insight.
I am (was) a medical assistant level 1 at a hospital off-sight clinic for 9 years. Worked in the medical field for 18 years. I am well aware of hipaa but this shocked me. I am devistated personally, professionally and financially.
My 25 y/o son became a pt at my clinic under emergent curcumstances. At the time of his first visit I helped him fill out medical record releases for myself and his grandfather as we are his primary care givers/helpers. For three months I was directly involved in my sons care. Everyone knew this, and his doctors discussed everything w/me. A month later my son developed seizures of unknown orig. w/ retrograde amnesia which involved a hospital stay. After this more than ever I was involved and with him at each appointment at my clinic because he could not drive and had lowered mental capabilities, and cognative issues.
My son had given me his disability form to give to his doctor as he now had driving restrictions. I went to our medical records staff and asked them to pull his chart for me to give to his doctor. I clipped the form to it and delivered it to the doctor without looking at it. The doctor needed the neurologists dictation which was not in the chart, so I went to his (the requesting pcp) staff and asked that they print the neuorolgy dictation for the doctor. An hour later I was handed the dictation. It was folded up. I didnt know what it was, I looked at it, saw that it was full of holes because the neuro is hard to understand. Then I noticed it was my sons. I went to the neuro's nurse (also @ my clinic) and asked her how quickly the neuro fixes his dictations because my sons pcp needed info to give my son meds. which he was almost out of. She answed my question and we both walked away. I gave the dictation to my sons pcp and went about my regular duties.
The next day i was called in by my supervisor and asked if I had hipaa violated my son. I was shocked. I denyed it. How could I hipaa violate with record releases in place. She insisted that i had pulled the chart, looked up and printed the neuro dictation, which I had not. I explained it all to her. The investigation continued and it was proven that I had NOT pulled the chart and I had NOT looked up or printed the neuro dictation. She chastised me for getting other people into trouble and said that regardless of record releases I could not ask for or transport my sons records or ask about them. Again I explained that I asked for the chart, yes, and I had given to the doctor.I did not read it because I didnt have to, I knew everything anyway. And I did not ask the dictation be printed for me, but for the doctor... the nurse misunderstood I guessed and handed it to me. And was that really wrong if I had rights to release? They said it was.
I can not find anything after months of research that says what I did was a violation. I can not find any help. Lawyers want money upfront and I have none after 3 months of unemployment.
My son or the rest of my family dont know what really happened. I told them that I quit. My husband knows, and is very upset w/me. I have not been able to find another job.... my boss told alot of people why I was terminated. I am devastated.
I know of many situations where family are pts at offices. In some cases family to the only nurse in the place... and she pulls the chart, puts them in the room, writes their scripts, discharges etc.
Other cases where the doctor see's his own family members, reviews labs etc.
In my own clinic nurses are involved with family members as pts all the time, including chart handling and putting them in rooms to be seen without record releases! I dont understand why what I did was a violation with releases in place?!
Please help.
Is this really a HIPAA violation if you have record releases in place?
Is there an address or number for healthcare workers rights regarding hipaa laws and terminations? All I find is pts rights regarding hipaa laws.
They even documented the wrong reason for my termination on my paperwork! They put 42.c which is a much more severe violation than what I actually did which was a 42.b (or so they claim) 42.c is accessing medical records for malicious intent or personal gain. 42.b is accessing families records. Which holds a much less severe punishment.
However there is no information about accessing with record releases. And in my opinion I didnt access. I asked for things to be released to me. I didnt pull the chart myself, or look up anything in the system, or read his chart. They said that by reading the dictation after it was handed to me I accessed.
Please, any help or advise would be wonderful. My career is over and my marriage and home are next!
I am a registered health information administrator. I think you might have a case for appealing your unemployment if nothing else.
Suggestions:
First: I would review the ROI form that your son signed to review the dates. Most releases are for a specific date and are not open-ended. If there was and end date, did you request/receive information after that end date? If not, you had the right to access the information it is how you accessed it that is in question.
Second: The HIM department is responsible for delivering charts to physician offices, not family members. In this instance, you were involved in your son's care as a family member and not a healthcare giver. You should not have asked for the chart itself and the HIM department should have not handed it to you. They are the keepers of medical records and should have proactively asked you if the chart was needed for patient care. HIM has got to get out of the habit of turning records over to healthcare givers just because they work at the hospital.
Third: Not sure what the set-up was like with the physician's office, but it sounds like this dictation should have come from the HIM department and not the physician's office.
Quite frankly, the hospital is likely to say that you used your position to get information rather than going through the proper channels. Even if you have a ROI signed, you do not have the right to access information yourself and must go through the proper channels to do so.
vrendon
1 Post
I am a registered health information administrator. I think you might have a case for appealing your unemployment if nothing else.
Suggestions:
First: I would review the ROI form that your son signed to review the dates. Most releases are for a specific date and are not open-ended. If there was and end date, did you request/receive information after that end date? If not, you had the right to access the information it is how you accessed it that is in question.
Second: The HIM department is responsible for delivering charts to physician offices, not family members. In this instance, you were involved in your son's care as a family member and not a healthcare giver. You should not have asked for the chart itself and the HIM department should have not handed it to you. They are the keepers of medical records and should have proactively asked you if the chart was needed for patient care. HIM has got to get out of the habit of turning records over to healthcare givers just because they work at the hospital.
Third: Not sure what the set-up was like with the physician's office, but it sounds like this dictation should have come from the HIM department and not the physician's office.
Quite frankly, the hospital is likely to say that you used your position to get information rather than going through the proper channels. Even if you have a ROI signed, you do not have the right to access information yourself and must go through the proper channels to do so.