Is this a HIPAA violation?

[Pooh Carlson]

So I'm in the process of getting a new job. I had to go for a physical as part of the hiring process. Over the last, oh, 14 years of my life I've struggled with feelings of depression and occasional suicidal thoughts. I decided enough was enough and it's time for a change, so I brought it up to the doctor, hoping to get a referral to a therapist, as I wasn't sure where exactly the best place to go would be. This pretty much dead stopped the physical, as she refused to continue until I went and saw a therapist. She actually wanted to call an ambulance to take me somewhere at first because she was so worried but I talked her out of that and was able to get the referral I wanted. I went for the first time to a talk therapist this past weekend, he gave me a few exercises and we made another appointment to meet back. He diagnosed me with mild to moderate depression and wrote a note for the doctor saying that I had no suicidal, homicidal or self-harm ideations, and while I've had thoughts in the past, I don't have any current thoughts that I'm going to act on, which is true. This note was needed for the physician to finish the physical.

Now, I ended up having to go to a different clinic under the same company since the first clinic didn't have machinery I needed to complete the testing (had to be fitted for a respirator). I gave the note to the physician and he took my chart and everything out to the area where all the nurses gather. At one point I hear one person loudly reading the note to another (I could hear almost everything that was going on from my room... absolutely no soundproofing), "He has no suicidal ideation, homicidal ideation, or self-harm ideation." I didn't hear the person say my name, but he was clearly, very loudly within ear shot of just about anybody in the clinic, talking about me and something very personal.

I just feel very strange about the clinic. They seemed a little too relaxed and very disorganized. I had to fill a questionnaire out that I had already filled out, and when I told somebody I had already filled it out, and they claimed I hadn't, I was like, "Yes I did! The doctor was looking at it!"

Anyway, I know there are some people on this board that know HIPAA laws. How does this whole situation sound to you guys?

[mcmahonfan85]

well maybe they were talking so loudly because they were recording a podcast. its okay to disclose someone's private medical history on a podcast

[Pooh Carlson]

Jun 29, 2018 21:28:54 GMT -5 mcmahonfan85 said:

well maybe they were talking so loudly because they were recording a podcast. its okay to disclose someone's private medical history on a podcast

They must've been talk to texting the employees at my last job.

[Tenshigure]

One of the resident HIPAA experts checking in.

One of the most common violations of HIPAA is indeed conversations between staff within earshot of unauthorized individuals. With that said, it's difficult to prove that it was deliberate disclosure for malicious reasons; so while you can certainly file a complaint with the HHS (and you should), you personally are unlikely going to see any kind of restitution or even hear about the outcome of the complaint.

Don't let that discourage you from reporting it, any clinic getting lax on their procedures should certainly tighten up when it comes to things like this either way.

[Burst]

I wouldn't necessarily call it enough to be considered a HIPAA violation, there needed to have been definite patient-identifiable information. Granted, it was definitely unprofessional and even if you're technically in a 'safe', non-public area (e.g. the nurses station) you're still supposed to be mindful of that sort of thing when talking.

In general though it's tricky, the patient information still needs to be presented, but especially in old buildings the soundproofing is nonexistent and even if you went aside into another exam room for instance, it might still be too loud.

Now, I don't know if this clinic had students for instance, but I have definitely known some to have absolutely no sense of tact when presenting a patient. Again, not enough to necessarily be provable as a HIPAA violation, but definitely enough to be unprofessional and to probably need to be pulled aside and reminded.

[Natural Born Farmer]

Unprofessional as all hell anyways.

[edgestar]

I once asked a former manager, if we could talk in private, because I was going for a seizure study, last summer. He was okay with giving me the time off. While I was in the hospital, coworkers were texting me, that they were praying for a safe recovery, and to ask, if I need anything. That manager twisted my talk with him, and told everyone, that I needed brain surgery. That manager is no longer there, and the company had to basically pay for his lies with me, and said that what he did, could hurt them, legally.

[Tenshigure]

Jun 30, 2018 9:00:49 GMT -5 edgestar said:

I once asked a former manager, if we could talk in private, because I was going for a seizure study, last summer. He was okay with giving me the time off. While I was in the hospital, coworkers were texting me, that they were praying for a safe recovery, and to ask, if I need anything. That manager twisted my talk with him, and told everyone, that I needed brain surgery. That manager is no longer there, and the company had to basically pay for his lies with me, and said that what he did, could hurt them, legally.

While HIPAA only applies to medical professionals (anyone who could potentially have access to medical records anyways), for regular folk (as is the case with your situation) it’s more likely FMLA violations freaking out the company. 

I always encourage rage people to really pay attention to things like this, because I can’t count the number of times people have gotten taken advantage of due to their rights.

I had a manager try to tell me I had to take “mandatory 40 hours of training off business hours,” unpaid because they expected my team to know their crappy project management system. I refused without getting it in writing I was being paid for my time since it was an FMLA violation to perform work duties without compensation (I’m not a charity worker and it wasn’t a certificate to do my job), and sure enough that training because “optional but highly recommended” instead. 

[edgestar]

Jun 30, 2018 9:17:58 GMT -5 Tenshigure said:

Jun 30, 2018 9:00:49 GMT -5 edgestar said:

I once asked a former manager, if we could talk in private, because I was going for a seizure study, last summer. He was okay with giving me the time off. While I was in the hospital, coworkers were texting me, that they were praying for a safe recovery, and to ask, if I need anything. That manager twisted my talk with him, and told everyone, that I needed brain surgery. That manager is no longer there, and the company had to basically pay for his lies with me, and said that what he did, could hurt them, legally.

While HIPAA only applies to medical professionals (anyone who could potentially have access to medical records anyways), for regular folk (as is the case with your situation) it’s more likely FMLA violations freaking out the company. 

I always encourage rage people to really pay attention to things like this, because I can’t count the number of times people have gotten taken advantage of due to their rights.

I had a manager try to tell me I had to take “mandatory 40 hours of training off business hours,” unpaid because they expected my team to know their crappy project management system. I refused without getting it in writing I was being paid for my time since it was an FMLA violation to perform work duties without compensation (I’m not a charity worker and it wasn’t a certificate to do my job), and sure enough that training because “optional but highly recommended” instead. 

Oh, I get that. My mom works in a doctor's office. The company I work for, was mad about a conversation that I wanted to keep private, being shared. (If I was having any kind of surgery, I'd ask to share that with everyone, in case I needed help, when I came back.) They company said he put them in hot water, with the FMLA papers, and not offering them to me, but vacation time, and also telling people that an EEG, was me, having brain surgery.

[Sponsored by Groose Wipes]

I don't know if that's a HIPAA violation or not, but it's just very irresponsible and unprofessional. I would find a different clinic if you can. A place like that should make you feel welcomed and that you are in a safe place, not the opposite.

[Toxik916]

It does not sound like a HIPAA violation to me. Some doctors will use voice recordings for their chart notes and that might have been what's going on.

Also when you go for a physical you have to be very careful what you discuss with the doctor. Most physicals are covered 100% by insurance, but as soon as you start talking about any other ailments or issues they can code it with an active diagnosis which can make the claim deny or give the patient some liability.

[Deleted]

I manage security for a hospital. That doesn't mean I know dirt about HIPAA (Especially since I'm Canadian) but this is almost certainly a violation of an internal privacy policy and the kind of stuff you can definitely file a complaint about. Even if they weren't talking about you, you need to have enough consideration for patient care to even avoid the appearence.

[tartsonawire]

Hi, AAS in Medical Office Admin, currently works in veteran's disability claims.

To the best of my understanding, the only thing that may not have made this a HIPAA violation is if the doctor didn't mention your name. That said, it was certainly unethical to be speaking that loudly if they needed to discuss your conditions with a nurse or whoever, and I certainly wouldn't blame you for filing a complaint.

For reference, www.hhs.gov/hipaa/for-professionals/privacy/guidance/incidental-uses-and-disclosures/index.html