To think that this is a breach of patient confidentiality?

[mamaggie]

My daughter (17 now) was diagnosed with a degenerative illness in late childhood.

Last night, whilst out for a friend's birthday, I was approached by the (now retired) practise nurse at the surgery, offering condolences. She said - in front of work colleagues and assorted acquaintances - "oh Maggie my heart sank when I saw the results of X's blood tests" - leaving me having to then have to go into more detail than is required about my child's health and prognosis.

AIBU to think she should just fuck right off?

I called her a stupid fucking bitch, and I stand by that.

I didn't call her that because she was a nurse, I called her that because of her appalling, unjustifiable behaviour.

And you had better believe that if I or one of my family need medical attention I hope we don't get it from someone so incompetent, so unaware if the most basic ethical and legal requirements of their job, that they think it is acceptable to go shouting about the condition in public.

And sorry, but "ooooh, guess how I felt about your child's medical test results" is gossiping, particularly when done in front of a room full of people.

A practising nurse who did that would face disciplinary action for that kind of deliberate flouting of medical ethics and data protection, and so they bloody should.

It's hard to believe someone with so little regard for a sick child's right to privacy had a long and distinguished career doing anything.

AThing - I think I must have just come across the worlds most perfect human being.

What does it feel like?

Anyway, back to the point in questions. NOBODY on this thred has said that she did nothing wrong .EVERYBODY is in agreement that it was an awful thing to say.

The difference of opinion is that there are those who feel it was a genuine human error, and those who feel it was deliberate, malicious gossip and that if she said that then she must have been doing it all the way through her career. Which IMO is nasty, and if I were on the receiving end of your vitriol, I would be so upset you would not believe.

I don't believe "human error" comes even close to explaining why someone would think it was OK to talk loudly in public about a child's medical test results.

Even someone not bound by ethics and the law not to reveal that information would be extremely insensitive and lacking in judgement to have brought the matter up in the situation described.

Human error means an easy mistake that anyone could make if they weren't paying attention, not a complete failure to obey even the most basic laws relating to your employment.

If you did this to me you would not face my vitriol, or be explaining anything. I would deal with this entirely through official channels and would not trouble myself to speak to you again.

A sick teenager had her condition broadcast to room full of strangers because this gobshite couldn't hold her whisht.

"Oh, whoopsie, could have happened to a bishop" isn't an adequate response.

Well let's just hope that if you have a dd who decides to become a nurse she does not ever make a mistake if she meets somebody like you!Would you agree and say, well dd you are a stupid fucking bitch, or would you say, don't worry, you have done a great job until now, and you will need to learn from this by apologising and moving on.

Broadcast now was it? Shouted across teh room was it?

Oh, and by the way, you are not american are you? Because you would make a fortune out there, you could sue anyone and everyone.

She is a retired nurse - the time for learning about basic medical ethics was about 40 years ago.

And no, if my adult children make serious and illegal errors of judgement that cause harm to innocent children I will not pat them on the head and tell them it's OK because it was just a wee "mistake".

So, you are so angry because she is retired?

So it wouln't matter if she was still practising. I see.

Right, well, i can see we shall not be agreeing on much here and my lot are not getting themselves out of bed, so gotta go and leave you all to it. Not alot more I can add anyway.

I still think it was wrong but not a deliberated malicious act.

Outcome is the same and in case she does it again, she needs to be 'advised'. My bet is that she would be terribly upset and not realised that the information wasn't common knowledge.

It's still wrong.

Calling her a stupid fucking bitch says more about the speaker of those words than the person they are spoken to.

Nobody said it was malicious - just that it was utterly stupid, careless and negligent of her to be so casual with her public chatter about a child's medical data.

And that's what makes her a stupid bitch - that she didn't understand how clearly and obviously wrong it was to have brought this up in public (or, arguably, anywhere).

What kind of person thinks that someone they barely know needs to hear about their own feelings when that person's child was diagnosed with an illness?

Yuck. Thank god she's not nursing anymore.

I'm sure the practice she worked at would prefer to know how much potential trouble she is getting them into going around blathering about patients to all and sundry.

Yanbu- i would talk to the practice though, rather than the ex-nurse in question. This is because she hasn't internalised the confidentiality requirements of her job as you would have expected her to do if trained properly, and I'd want the practice to make sure that they emphasised this in their current training.

Confidentiality should be second nature after so many years on the job. It is disturbing if she can accidentally make slip ups like this.

It's very odd that she would walk up to you and greet you like that, seven years after the test results but in a way that makes them sound very recent.

There are some professions where the code of conduct lasts a lifetime, it doesn't end because you have retired or found another job. The patients you treated still have the right to confidentiality regardless of where you now work or if you are retired.

I don't believe that after 40 years good practice, diligence and professionalism she suddenly turned into a loudmouthed gossip. Confidentiality (so fundamental) should be engrained in a nurse with this experience. If its not, she needs a very serious reminder.

karismatik You really never get any thanks? I'm astonished. IME for every angry, upset patient there is a kind, grateful one.

Not in the area I work in, Nellie I'm afraid. I don't expect thanks from patients (due to the nature of their illness) but it would be nice to get it from somewhere (managers, perhaps or relatives, just anyone really).

It's not why I do the job, of course, but it would be nice if not to get thanks, to not get so many complaints (not about care per se, usually about waiting due to resource problems).

Of course, AfterDinner she should complain about this, no question. However it's the venom that is being expressed that is unsettling. Anger, yes understandable, upset of course but such hatred??

PERHAPS the retired nurse thought, after all it was 2005, that everyone knew by then? or perhaps the do know?

seems a bit harsh, was she really loud. is she generlaly a loud person. ?

perhaps she felt that she Should have said something, rather than brush it under the carpet. was she well known to you in 2005?

i dont spose you need to see her though, with your quick change of subject perhaps she realised her error.
otoh perhaps it would be a good opportunity for her to apologise for her gaff

but complain officially?
i dont think so

"PERHAPS the retired nurse thought, after all it was 2005, that everyone knew by then?"

WTAF?

This is the most sensitive, most highly protected form of personal data - a diagnosis of an illness is not something that "everyone" gets to know about eventually.

And a fucking nurse of all people should know that, and care about it.

This wasn't a "gaffe" it was a massive breach of trust.

"Confidentiality (so fundamental) should be engrained in a nurse with this experience. If its not, she needs a very serious reminder."

Quite.

And if the reminder doesn't convince her to keep her big trap shut about other people's illnesses in public, maybe the threat of losing her pension might.