tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7407016858777887859.post9130011450716832566..comments2023-10-22T05:08:51.281-06:00Comments on Confessions of a Rotten Correspondent: short question/long answerthe rotten correspondenthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02704525054720181936noreply@blogger.comBlogger26125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7407016858777887859.post-6228030689433196902007-12-07T07:54:00.000-06:002007-12-07T07:54:00.000-06:00Something like that would put me right off bloggin...Something like that would put me right off blogging altogether. The only time I ever heard of someone getting busted on HIPPA was a total jerk in Washington state who stole the identity of a critically ill cancer patient, figuring he could run up huge amounts of debt in the guy's name with no consequences.-Annhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/08359625931588140579noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7407016858777887859.post-77368943406762197732007-12-06T16:19:00.000-06:002007-12-06T16:19:00.000-06:00I wondered about that too, but I love all your sto...I wondered about that too, but I love all your stories so I can cope with just occasional work ones. They're always worth the wait.Jo Beaufoixhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/00957369658590225971noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7407016858777887859.post-63187418014560502832007-12-05T21:10:00.000-06:002007-12-05T21:10:00.000-06:00I'm with Eileen, you could write a book. You know...I'm with Eileen, you could write a book. You know, you write about a lot of things that don't have anything to do with work, that are just great. Of course, I'm biased.Susanhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/04503536366500859750noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7407016858777887859.post-44357285500883472282007-12-05T19:50:00.000-06:002007-12-05T19:50:00.000-06:00Note to RC, I never had a mullet in the 80's. Now ...Note to RC, I never had a mullet in the 80's. Now you found someone. :)ped crossinghttps://www.blogger.com/profile/06360740233306533239noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7407016858777887859.post-13369210969759955992007-12-05T18:56:00.000-06:002007-12-05T18:56:00.000-06:00I totally understand. When I write about my stude...I totally understand. When I write about my students at work, I do not give any identifying information. I have never shown any pictures of me and Eileen is really my middle name. So, I am a bit paranoid too. I want to be respectful to the people I work with, and would never want to betray confidentiality. However, I do blog about it, just being ever so careful about the identifying info. Lots of doctors and nurses write books about their experiences and patients, so there must be some legal way around it. <BR/><BR/>When I took my Family Leave Act last year, because of one daughter's head injury, and my other daughter's bi polar, both acting up seriously at the same time, my doctor put me out for depression. Then, along with my medication, he faxed the script meant for work, that said out for depression to the pharmacy by mistake. I was furious. We live in such a small town, half of hubby's students work at that drug store. It was such a clear privacy violation. My doctor said, "sorry, I hit the wrong button." Ok, it was an accident. But I still was upset, and could have made a huge deal, but he made a mistake. Damage done. What can you do.<BR/><BR/>By the way. I still think you should write a book. I'm just saying.........<BR/>XOXOXAnonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7407016858777887859.post-80156157141892321562007-12-05T14:12:00.000-06:002007-12-05T14:12:00.000-06:00I can understand the restriction and the whys''t k...I can understand the restriction and the whys''t know and wherefores of them, so just keep telling us what happened without giving any names!;)<BR/><BR/>I can identify with the woman who didn't know her son's dob, when I had to take youngest son to hospital with a nasty gash on his head, he had to give his own name and dob because my mind had gone completely blank - he was only 6 years old!! :(Akelamaluhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/11234268568845148285noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7407016858777887859.post-33943962795438471932007-12-05T13:56:00.000-06:002007-12-05T13:56:00.000-06:00Our laws aren't quite so prohibitive here in Canad...Our laws aren't quite so prohibitive here in Canada, but there's the same general understanding. You can lose your job for breach of confidentiality, and it amazes me how many people are determined to butt in where it's not their business anyhow.<BR/><BR/>Like... when I had Punkin in the hospital that I worked in, everyone knew I'd had her before I made it up to the floor to visit the next day. Because they'd poked into L&D, Maternity and the NICUs records looking for labs to be able to tell what I'd had.Madam Crunchypantshttps://www.blogger.com/profile/11105080184570652882noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7407016858777887859.post-5371768811351450712007-12-05T13:24:00.000-06:002007-12-05T13:24:00.000-06:00Fascinating stuff....got some insight into it when...Fascinating stuff....got some insight into it when Neil was at school and had to follow those rules. <BR/><BR/>I'd be a wee bit OCD if I were in your shoes as well.Kimberly Vanderhorsthttps://www.blogger.com/profile/01653757517652257445noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7407016858777887859.post-87516904735991878172007-12-05T13:18:00.000-06:002007-12-05T13:18:00.000-06:00Absolutely fascinating. Some of it makes perfect s...Absolutely fascinating. Some of it makes perfect sense, some seems petty, mean-minded and downright stupid. <BR/><BR/>It's like Politically Correct. In essence, this is a good thing but certain people twist it to suit their unbalanced views.<BR/><BR/>I won't go on, but we live in a very strange world nowadays.Dumdadhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/00070838905120958459noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7407016858777887859.post-30519751885513466842007-12-05T11:57:00.000-06:002007-12-05T11:57:00.000-06:00Yes, I know, RC. And he is so damn far from perfe...Yes, I know, RC. And he is so damn far from perfect. The thing about him, though, is that he really wants to do right by the American people. I don't think you can say that about a lot of politicians.<BR/><BR/>He did leave this country in an excellent condition when he stepped down. Can't say the same for the current occupant.Kimhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/05655321325607087357noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7407016858777887859.post-81197561765882681852007-12-05T11:15:00.000-06:002007-12-05T11:15:00.000-06:00Yes I'm careful what I say about lots of things - ...Yes I'm careful what I say about lots of things - think you have to be nowadays. Sad state of life.Flowerpothttps://www.blogger.com/profile/14102679179201725732noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7407016858777887859.post-60151971455698277942007-12-05T10:59:00.000-06:002007-12-05T10:59:00.000-06:00I just added laurie's link to the post. Thanks a l...I just added laurie's link to the post. Thanks a lot, laurie. That was a really interesting article.the rotten correspondenthttps://www.blogger.com/profile/02704525054720181936noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7407016858777887859.post-31079027238147381622007-12-05T10:49:00.000-06:002007-12-05T10:49:00.000-06:00Oh, and pixelpi and diana - thanks for the perspec...Oh, and pixelpi and diana - thanks for the perspective from other areas of medicine. It's nice to not feel alone.<BR/><BR/>And Frances - welcome!the rotten correspondenthttps://www.blogger.com/profile/02704525054720181936noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7407016858777887859.post-47594358135215981302007-12-05T10:48:00.000-06:002007-12-05T10:48:00.000-06:00I kind of dragged my feet about writing this becau...I kind of dragged my feet about writing this because I thought it might put a lot of people off. I knew some of you (you know who you are!) who deal with this in your own jobs would understand. <BR/><BR/>But I really wasn't following the train through to other fields, like media(jen and laurie) or mortgages (auntie barbie), education (ped crossing), child issues (ciara), or the HR point of view (kaycie). It really is something that affects us all - in different ways, but the impact is still there.<BR/><BR/>BTW kaycie, you and I share a favorite contemporary president, but you do know, don't you, that this was his baby? Although I think certain relatives who are now running for president had a lot to do with it.the rotten correspondenthttps://www.blogger.com/profile/02704525054720181936noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7407016858777887859.post-28999001322568900342007-12-05T10:42:00.000-06:002007-12-05T10:42:00.000-06:00here's the top of the NYTimes story. it's well wor...here's the top of the NYTimes story. it's well worth reading.<BR/><BR/>you can find it by searching their archives for July 3:<BR/><BR/>July 3, 2007<BR/>Keeping Patients’ Details Private, Even From Kin<BR/>By JANE GROSS<BR/><BR/>An emergency room nurse in Palos Heights, Ill., told Gerard Nussbaum he could not stay with his father-in-law while the elderly man was being treated after a stroke.<BR/><BR/>Another nurse threatened Mr. Nussbaum with arrest for scanning his relative’s medical chart to prove to her that she was about to administer a dangerous second round of sedatives.<BR/><BR/>The nurses who threatened him with eviction and arrest both made the same claim, Mr. Nussbaum said: that access to his father-in-law and his medical information were prohibited under the Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act, or Hipaa, as the federal law is known.<BR/><BR/>Mr. Nussbaum, a health care and Hipaa consultant, knew better and stood his ground. Nothing in the law prevented his involvement. <BR/><BR/>But the confrontation drove home the way Hipaa is misunderstood by medical professionals, as well as the frustration — and even peril — that comes in its wake.<BR/><BR/>Government studies released in the last few months show the frustration is widespread, an unintended consequence of the 1996 law.<BR/><BR/>Hipaa was designed to allow Americans to take their health insurance coverage with them when they changed jobs, with provisions to keep medical information confidential. <BR/><BR/>But new studies have found that some health care providers apply Hipaa regulations overzealously, leaving family members, caretakers, public health and law enforcement authorities stymied in their efforts to get information.<BR/><BR/>Experts say many providers do not understand the law, have not trained their staff members to apply it judiciously, or are fearful of the threat of fines and jail terms — although no penalty has been levied in four years.<BR/><BR/>Some reports blame the language of the law itself, which says health care providers may share information with others unless the patient objects, but does not require them to do so. <BR/><BR/>Thus, disclosures are voluntary and health care providers are left with broad discretion .....lauriehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/18055442432266567561noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7407016858777887859.post-19066163476039112572007-12-05T10:40:00.000-06:002007-12-05T10:40:00.000-06:00Education has the same issue. We have to be carefu...Education has the same issue. We have to be careful giving need to know info. You can't do it in front of anyone who doesn't need to know. That is hard to do in a school, there are always people around. <BR/><BR/>And that is why I haven't blogged about any of the funny things that my students do. <BR/><BR/>Frustrating, isn't it.ped crossinghttps://www.blogger.com/profile/06360740233306533239noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7407016858777887859.post-7590787877243996582007-12-05T08:55:00.000-06:002007-12-05T08:55:00.000-06:00This is exactly why I almost never blog about work...This is exactly why I almost never blog about work. I'm paranoid that even if I change details, it may land me in trouble because what I made up was too close to a different patient that I didn't even know and then I'd have to do some serious explaining and proving and lose more than one night of sleep. Pity, really, because the stories are so very good. <BR/><BR/>Last year, our administration actually came out and said that blogging was fine in their view but just be aware of all the rules of confidentiality, which made me feel better for some reason. I, too, love my job and wouldn't jeopardize it for the world. <BR/><BR/>I feel all 'secret service' with it. I won't even tell my husband that someone came in to the clinic that he knows and told me to say "Hi" to him.<BR/><BR/>What really drives me crazy, though, and I'm sure you, too, is that many don't understand that patient information from provider to provider that is necessary for the care of the patient is to freely flow. A release isn't needed if I call up someone's cardiologist to tell them their patient was here and having a change in their cardiac symptoms or if I call the ER they were in the previous night, needing their lab or ECG results. Sadly, sometimes care is held up by some employees not understanding that there is some information that doesn't need a signed release. Work comp is another area that isn't quite the same. There is some information, primarily around impairment due to a medical condition or a positive drug test that could put the employee or others at risk on the job, or information regarding an on-the-job injury covered by work comp. That medical information is legally the right of the employer.Dianahttps://www.blogger.com/profile/08273493776473085128noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7407016858777887859.post-44278203188055394952007-12-05T08:05:00.000-06:002007-12-05T08:05:00.000-06:00I always wondered about that, I love your stories,...I always wondered about that, I love your stories, work or otherwise, I'm sure you would never put yourself at risk.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7407016858777887859.post-7814944383319454542007-12-05T07:59:00.000-06:002007-12-05T07:59:00.000-06:00Wow! This is something new..Thanks for sharing. ...Wow! This is something new..Thanks for sharing. Btw, are you in violation already, writing about this;-)la bellina mamminahttps://www.blogger.com/profile/05480564746644285382noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7407016858777887859.post-22837157353621046292007-12-05T07:46:00.000-06:002007-12-05T07:46:00.000-06:00"That law is not terribly clear . . . ". Well, th..."That law is not terribly clear . . . ". Well, that is an enormous understatement. The people who wrote it don't know what the hell it means. The poor medical professionals are scared out of their wits because of HR people and lawyers. I know the type because I once was one. Be conservative and never, ever, say anything that puts you at risk of being sued. Which translates to: scare the pants off them so they'll tow the company line.<BR/><BR/>I was still working in HR when the HIPPA nightmare began. I was working for a small manufacturing concern where I was in charge of personnel, employee relations, workers' comp, compensation and benefits, and payroll. We were self insured, so I was in a position where I either knew or had access to every bit of information on any given employee. I was supposed to not notice that so-and-so's kid was on prozac, or that another had heart problems or was being treated for alcohol problems or pregnancy or . . . <BR/><BR/>What I really hated was that upper management would try to get me to tell them these things for various reasons. I finally worked with our benefits claim processors to design a system where I couldn't tell who the claims were for so that I didn't have to sidestep or lie my way out of those meetings. That was actually the only good thing HIPAA ever allowed me to do. It made me deliriously happy to say, "You know, Mr. CEO, I actually have no way to access that information since we began preparing for HIPPA".<BR/><BR/>Of course that has nothing to do with why I quit working. Oh, wait. Yes, it does. Totally.<BR/><BR/>In the words of my favorite contemporary president, I feel your pain, RC.Kimhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/05655321325607087357noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7407016858777887859.post-66999217723487099292007-12-05T07:42:00.000-06:002007-12-05T07:42:00.000-06:00I understand the whole HIPAA thing, and I agree, t...I understand the whole HIPAA thing, and I agree, there are good points and bad points to it. Being in the media, it's made it difficult for us sometimes when were trying to report how many injuries, who was injured, etc. But I wouldn't neccessarily want my info on TV, either. A double-edged sword, indeed. And who cares if you change up the info? The stories are still interesting and entertaining.Jenhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/07900746787671291548noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7407016858777887859.post-84641365419816381512007-12-05T06:45:00.000-06:002007-12-05T06:45:00.000-06:00I understand your situation perfectly. Before I de...I understand your situation perfectly. Before I decided to make construction management a career I was a foreclosure/bankruptcy supervisor for a large mortgage company. Privacy acts affected us as well. We were not allowed to give out any information without written and signed authority by the mortgagor of record. Try dealing with an irate wife whos name is not on the mortgage but just opened her husbands mail to find out she had 30 days to vacate her home. I had to actually fire someone because they violated the policy and we were sued by the mortgagor.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7407016858777887859.post-80704315979477977732007-12-05T06:41:00.000-06:002007-12-05T06:41:00.000-06:00RC, did you read the new york times story a couple...RC, did you read the new york times story a couple of months ago about how hospitals and doctors offices are being overly strict with HIPPA becaus they don't understand it? that health care workers are told don't say anything to anyone, when that isn't what the law says?<BR/><BR/>it was a pretty good story. had a case study about a woman who could not get any information on her mother (or maybe it was her mother-in-law) who was demented and in a different state. by law, she should have been able to, but health care workers are so afraid of that fine and of doing wrong, that they err on the side of caution and withhold information that they should give to families.<BR/><BR/>if you didn't see it, i'll try to find it for you.<BR/><BR/>i'm not saying that's what your hospital is doing; i'm just saying that apparently that law is not terribly clear and it has a lot of people afraid.lauriehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/18055442432266567561noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7407016858777887859.post-49982395250126541612007-12-05T05:24:00.000-06:002007-12-05T05:24:00.000-06:00Thanks for the post - really important things you ...Thanks for the post - really important things you are talking about.<BR/>Privacy - well it's double-edged, like gossip. We love gossip, but we hate to be gossipped about. We're fascinated by what happens to people in out-of-control situations, but we wouldn't want our private matters and health issues blared around. But not being able to talk about work is a difficult one. We need to off-load somewhere.lebanesahttps://www.blogger.com/profile/07988892248196307424noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7407016858777887859.post-16819216875757052082007-12-05T00:30:00.000-06:002007-12-05T00:30:00.000-06:00well, i never really knew too much about hipaa UNT...well, i never really knew too much about hipaa UNTIL i tried to get reimbursed from my ex-husband's insurance for our oldest daughter's glasses. 'sorry can't tell you' makes me laugh. so you can bet your sweet bippy that i did NOT get reimbursed (200 bucks). but never fear, taking the ex back to court for an increase in child support also (and i didn't even ask for it)got it in my court order that either one of us have access to the other's ins info...so, if i call up asking about a reimbursement, they gotta tell me. life is sweet! lmaoPamhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/12365631315923740004noreply@blogger.com