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I was fired from my residency program for a HIPAA violation that involved me accessing my friends labs with his consent .
Anonymous5 views3 answers
My best friend was visiting us from out of country. He underwent an emergent operation at the hospital i worked at. He requested me to update him regarding the lab results and imaging studies.I accessed these results on multiple occasions . They signed HIPAA paperwork two days after admission .Later i received calls from hospital that I had been involved in HIPAA violations. This was the first time i had ever been told /warned and i did not access charts after that. I was fired two weeks later for these violations. I pleaded that these were done in ignorance with intent to help alleviate the distress of my friend. The pt had requested I review his labs and is willing to testify .
Also this was my first ever violation and none had been repeated after the warning.
HIPAA requires hospitals to implement and train doctors and staff on security policies and procedures to ensure that patient information remains confidential and protected. If I were advising the hospital I would make sure it included in its policies clauses such as: 1) only the patient's medical providers are able to access that patient's medical information and only to the extent it needs to be accessed for the individual provider to accomplish his/her job, 2) any patient requests for information regarding a test or lab needs to be in writing or confirmed in writing, and so on. Your former hospital probably had some similar provisions regarding security that you violated. Violations of HIPAA can expose the hospital to millions of dollars in fines so you can understand why they are taking severe action.
Are you a licensed practitioner? Can your friend be considered your patient? I believe that you have too many questions left unanswered. At the very least I think you need to consult with an employment attorney and see if you can work out a resolution with your former employer as to why you were discharged. If you want to remain gainfully employed in the health care sector you need to avoid having this type of blemish. Good luck.
