I'm really not being, no. Is this even legal?!

[Peedoffy]

Name change as this is pretty identifying but am a long standing member here (though have never started my own AIBU thread before!)

I'm an NHS physiotherapist and my sickness record up till now has been flawless (No days off since I started this job over a year ago) but was off for almost 3 weeks at the end of last month/ beginning of this month with pneumonia. Really quite unwell, needed hospital admission, iv fluids etc.

Anyway, I've been back at work now for a couple of weeks and nothing has been said but today I was called into my managers office for a 'chat' and there were 2 senior managers there who informed me that they had called me in to ask me about my time off sick as they had looked on the computer and seen I hadn't been for a chest x ray at all (I told them I had when I rang in sick hence the diagnosis). Due to the nature of our work we obviously have access to the x ray images stored in the system. Now, the reason my xray wasn't there was because I had it done at a private hospital and once I explained this all was well and they laughed a bit etc and said they were worried about calling me in.

I just accepted it and went back to work. But since getting home I've realised... WTF??! Surely they can't go around checking up on people like that, what about patient confidentiality? They had no reason to suspect I was lying but surely this can't be a standard thing to do if someone is off sick? Plus, I'm sure by law I don't have to tell them what's actually wrong with me do I, just that I'm sick so what if I'd had a miscarriage/ ectopic or something and made up the pneumonia thing as a fake reason to be off? I'm so annoyed with them I can't sleep!

Possibly it is brag I've brought it with me to work today anyway.

Okay, my plan is to phone my union later and decide what to do from there. I realise its a serious issue but I'm somewhat reluctant to rock the boat at work

You can read about how rare sackings are, and how many excuses NHS hospitals use to avoid discussing their information governance failures, here. You can read about how easy it is to phone up a hospital posing as a doctor and get any patients' records here. You can read how useless the auditing is as NHS Fife make flimsy excuses about not being able to find who leaked information about the Prime Minister's son.

As I say: 93C3 on your GP records to block upload, and don't tell an NHS employee anything you wouldn't want published in a newspaper. Even the Information Commissioner is being blocked from auditing the NHS, so they clearly have a lot to conceal.

I,m a nurse its disciplinary action to go poking around in people medical records especially staff!!

I know someone who was sacked for it so it does happen.

If you have an otherwise good relationship and don't want to rock the boat, then you can still bring it to their attention, in a carefully worded, but direct letter. At least it's on file??

Peedoffy, I understand your reluctance to rock the boat. But you have an obligation to think about other patients whose confidentiality may be being violated by the same senior managers. The rules on patient confidentiality exist for very good reasons. You can't ignore this.

If the senior managers are physios themselves, then they are breaching their duties as a registrant and should be reported to the HCPC.

www.hpc-uk.org/assets/documents/10003B6EStandardsofconduct,performanceandethics.pdf

Two faults in play here:

1. You knew you needed a GP certificate, as self certify is only for the first 7 days of sickness. In my company you'd be facing a disciplinary for not producing one, or not being paid. That would cost a lot more than £25. You could have spoken to a manager and they would have likely said your discharge docs were sufficient.

1. Your managers were in breach of confidentiality in accessing your records for this reason.

I'd think hard about involving a union. I'd also think hard about involving HR because it's quite likely you could all end up in the shit.

It does seem as though you all need to consider your "I know best" approach really when it comes to internal policies.

I am astonished that a. They searched for your medical records and b. that they admitted this to you. They must surely know this is outrageous.

Even as a non medical person I find this extraordinary, a total abuse of privilege and power, and deeply invasive. It is akin to a bank clerk searching for colleagues' financial information.

I understand why you don't want to rock the boat, especially as quite clearly the management team engages in very dodgy practice. You may, however, want to log the details for your own purposes so that you have a clear record of events, dates etc. that way, if it comes up again or anything happens, you are prepared.

With regard to self certification, perhaps correct any mistakes you have made now by supplying your discharge summary and, if possible, a GP note. While it may seem a hassle, it can only help you to be "more right".

I do not however think that your sick note or lack of lets them off the hook at all.

I also don't really think it is you who has or would be rocking the boat. They have rocked their own boat. But I know I know, anything for a quiet life at work.

That is really bad behaviour, but it is exactly for this reason that a friend of mine uses her maiden name for work and her married name for anything else, including anything medical. Although I guess a manager would be know both, but at least curious colleagues wouldn't.

Under the data protection law an employee is only allowed to access data that is relevant for their job and timely. This was a very major breach of the law and if you wanted to kick up a fuss you can. However if it were me I would let the people that where in the room know that you are aware that they have breached data protection and the primary trust's rules on using confidential data and request that they don't access your private medical records again. Do it by email.

Never mind anything else, to do as they have done is a CRIMINAL OFENCE under the data protection act.

I know you were going to get onto your union re this, but you really need to stress this-there will be an audit trail of your medical records to show who has accessed your records, when and where.

Never mind disciplinary, they should be facing court for this!

Under the data protection law an employee is only allowed to access data that is relevant for their job and timely.

The issue is wider than that. Under the NHS care records guarantee, this sort of stuff is supposed to be not only not permitted, but (a) not possible and (b) immediately subject to audit. I realise that the care records guarantee isn't worth the paper it's written on, but you'd have thought that the NHS would at least make some effort to make the pretence coherent.

The claim that's made when I'm being paranoid about confidentiality is that I shouldn't worry, because records are only accessible if there is a "legitimate relationship", such that the person accessing the record has a clinical or other reason to look at the records. Clearly, in this case, that isn't the case, so the access control in this hospital failed. The people who did it haven't been marched off site, so the audit in this hospital failed. The OP might like to ask the IG people, or the Caldicott Guardian, just what the fuck they're playing at

Had they looked at the OP's medical record and not told her, how would she have known? The answer is: she wouldn't. Which is why NHS confidentiality is a joke: NHS staff look at what they want, when they want, for any reason they want, and are permitted to do so.

That's terrible OP and seriously out of order! I would speak to your union and HR. At the very least they need to be re-trained and owe you a serious apology.

Hi, a person who helped me once is Flowery. Maybe put one in employment issues? She's usually there.

I'm sure that contravenes data protection law.

That's outrageous!

I work in the NHS, there are very strict rules regarding our electronic notes system! I would be in so much crap for accessing the notes of anyone without clinical reason, even more so a colleague I'm sure.

I would take it further, I really would!

"There is no way anyone who works in the NHS doesn't know this is a sackable offence! Report it."
Completely agree with this

Well, well dodge.

Fuck.ing.hell!

Report,report,report!

At work I can't even look at my own history,if I looked at anyone elses I would be shown the door.

Fuck.ing.hell!

Report,report,report!

At work I can't even look at my own history,if I looked at anyone elses I would be shown the door.

I agree with others. This is a sackable offence. We have mandatory IG training every year and it's drummed into us that they can and will sack people for this and there'll be no '2nd chances' as it were. There's no written warning or final warning. If they can prove you've done it they will fire you.

If you have the discharge papers, you should be able to get a sick note backdated to cover the time you were off sick. I had to do this once when mine got messed up.

have you had a look at the policy for sickness, if you have breached it by not providing a fit note you may well be in trouble for that but unless there is something that say's they have the right to seek information in the absence of fit note then they are in the wrong too and Union will be the best source of advice. hope you are better now.

We have mandatory IG training every year and it's drummed into us that they can and will sack people for this and there'll be no '2nd chances' as it were

Well, that say that. Now, let's look at some outcomes from the most recent report on the matter. Note all the warnings, ooh scary final warnings, final warning before dismissal, first and final warning...looks like in reality, there's plenty of second chances.

Never tell an NHS employee anything you wouldn't tell a journalist. Confidentiality is routinely ignored, and the consequences are usually a slap on the wrist. Northern Health and Social Care? Lots of "Access private information for personal interest", lots of "Investigation carried out- no further action taken". That's the reality of NHS information governance: lots of talk, no action. NHS Fife, the people that leaked Gordon Brown's sons records to journalists? "Breach of confidentiality on social network site", "First and final written warning". Again, the reality: you can leak patient records on Facebook and the NHS still won't take effective action beyond wagging fingers at you.

Yet again: don't tell an NHS employee anything you don't absolutely have to, as their information governance is a joke.