Harris County Texas Hosptial District Fire Workers for Privacy Violation
Sixteen hospital employees at Ben Taub were fired for accessing the medical record of a First year medical resident assigned to Ben Taub Hospital. The medical resident was shot in a grocery store parking lot and was admitted to Ben Taub as a patient. Most of the fired employees worked at Ben Taub Hospital and included nurses, managers, clerks, and others. The hospital cited the accessing of the medical record as a violation of patient privacy under the Health Insurance Portability Protection Act privacy rule. She is expected to make a full recovery. The move toward a national e-Health Records System makes privacy violations and patient privacy of key interest to privacy advocates. Curiosity coupled with technology continue to be the top challenges for privacy in the digital age.
Hospital district fires 16 over privacy violation, By CHRIS MORAN HOUSTON CHRONICLE, November 25, 2009
