Should I complain after a nurse shared my 16-year-old's medical details?

[Midglet]

My 16yr old had an incident this week that required medical intervention. They didn’t want people, even immediate family and close relatives, to know until they had underwent the operation and we respected those wishes. However a theatre nurse recognised their name and before my child was even under anaesthetic, the nurse had texted a distant relative of ours and divulged that not only was our child in for an operation , but the nature of such. The child was in theatre for four hours but within twenty mins of them being taken in the distant relative , who doesn’t have our mobile numbers, then started calling the hospital demanding details of our child’s prognosis and treatment. Thankfully we had been tipped off very quickly as the relative started contacting other family members ( who themselves weren’t aware of the situation until they themselves contacted us to see what was happening) and were able to request staff to refrain from divulging such. After several failed attempts the relative then turned up at the hospital and demanded access to our child, by which point they were out of surgery. The ward staff asked our 16 yr old ( with us present) if they would like the relative to gain access and our child immediately burst into tears with the thought …the relative is particularly difficult at the best of times and the children try to avoid all contact by their own choice . Thankfully again the staff were able to refuse the relative entry into the ward (Although our child is 16 and should have been in the adult wards a lack of beds had resulted in them being housed in the children’s ward with better security) . Anyway I am sitting stewing about the actions of this initial theatre nurse divulging private medical information to a third party . I know this is a huge breach of confidence and I hope such would be a disciplinary if I was to raise a complaint but I don’t know if I should . The nurse is a friend of the relative hence why she reached out and my family are divided as whether to take action as it will cause trouble within the wider family. Hubby thinks I should just forget it to keep the peace but I think the theatre nurse should be made aware her actions were totally unacceptable. I’ve never complained about anything before . Your thoughts would be appreciated !

Of course you should report this. Tough if the wider family disapproves, they should not be condoning such a flagrant breach of medical ethics.

In a word, YES

If this is true the individual concerned is wholly unsuitable to employment in a place where confidentiality is crucial. It is right that they should lose their job.

Please make an official complaint, @Midglet. I would be incandescent with fury if my medical details were shared by hospital staff.

if course you have to make a complaint. It's completely unethical.

Report it and if asked deny it - it sounds like a number of staff members wil have been made aware when the relative arrived that you weren’t the one who told them, plausibly any one of them could have felt professionally obliged to report it. I absolutely think you need to, but if you’re worried about fall out it may give you plausible deniability.

That nurse clearly has no idea of the family dynamics, there could be an abusive relationship involved and when she does it next it could be life threatening. She needs to be reported.

I would absolutely report it. Patient confidentiality is basic. It’s not a complicated thing or something that’s confusing or difficult to understand.

In that moment, when your DD was vulnerable, the nurse chose to prioritise being her friend’s friend, rather than your daughter’s nurse and that is completely unacceptable.

It lead to your DD being upset whilst recovering and having the stress of your relative turning up. That’s not on.

It needs to be dealt with as that kind of poor decision making can put people in danger. Both from relatives finding out information and from making the ones whose confidence is betrayed reluctant to go for medical help.

I would absolutely complain. What on earth did she think she was playing at!

Yes report it. I had my personal information divulged by a midwife to a, member of my family. I didn't report it and regret it so much.

Definitely report!

“Keeping the peace” doesnt mean your peace, or your daughter’s peace, both of which have already been distributed. It means “shut up and put someone’s else comfort over your own distress.

Never keep the peace when some has behaved as egregiously as this.

Absolutely report. This is completely unacceptable. There have been huge cases very recently where NHS staff have lost their jobs over their failures to preserve patient confidentiality.

We all have regular training on information governance and confidentiality.

This nurse has been completely out of order - what other malice is she up to?

Your relative has also behaved extremely badly.

Im a student nurse and I would know not to do this, ever, at all. It’s a disgrace . Complain. It’s not as if no harm came from it either is it? It’s a shocking lack of confidentiality. Your daughter should be able to seek and receive medical advice and treatment without fear of this happening , you should show her how important this is . They have probably done this before and will probably do this agajn . They need to have consequences . They would absolutely know that this is unacceptable and an incredibly serious breach of their code of conduct.

Absolutely complain! That’s unacceptable and awful behaviour.

Can you explain what the relationship is? E.g your Mum's cousins child that you don't even know or a bit closer like paternal Granny/Auntie etc?

YANBU to complain but guess it comes down to whether the fallout over one of your relatives being sacked and potentially fined is worth it, would you be happy to accept the damage to probably several family links/relationships (I would!).

So your daughter, who is still a child, has had her private information shared with the whole family which she didn’t want, has then had a difficult relative turn up at the hospital demanding to see her, which has then meant when she should have been concentrating on recovering, she’s had staff asking if she wants to see them.
Staff have needed to manage that difficult relative when they should have been doing other parts of their role.
All this has happened because someone has divulged information they shouldn’t have. They need to know the consequences. So I would be reporting, and I hope if the staff know what has happened, they will report too.

The longer term impact for your daughter also needs to be considered. What happens next time she wants privacy? Would it stop her accessing support in the future?

Definitely report it. Patient confidentiality is supposed to be the bedrock of NHS care. Her actions are inexcusable and she deserves to be subject to disciplinary procedures.

Formal complaint. That's a sackable offence for good reason.

You report that nurse instantly. She has broken many data laws. I.G will have a field day with her. Please report her, she should not have done that.

I would already have complained.

Outrageous behaviour by the nurse. She definitely should be held accountable for her actions.

Ithink you should report it but discuss it with your DD first and prepare her for any fallout from it. Make sure that she is totally on board with reporting before doing so.

I think the overwhelming response here is to report, and I agree with that. It's not even as if someone was pressing her for info and she let slip - she deliberately took it upon herself to share confidential info of her own volition. This has caused distress and upset to your child and now the whole family it seems knows their private business. Sod what the wider family thinks. Show your child you have their back and follow this up. This nurse could easily do it again and it could be you she's gossiping about next time.

(Edited because I'd made an assumption on the sex of the child and realise now it wasn't divulged in the OP).

I would report this OP it’s a major breach of confidentiality!

100% report it. Any fall out is a consequence of her actions in the first place not you reporting it.

Report
they Deserve to lose their job and they will

Absolutely. Medical confidentiality is a cornerstone of practice and trust. They deserve at the very least a serious disciplinary.