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Published on FierceHealthcare (http://www.fiercehealthcare.com)

WI nurses fired over cell photos of X-ray

By anne
Created Feb 27 2009 - 1:42am

A pair of nurses accused of taking a picture of patient X-rays have been fired, with one also charged with posting the pictures on a Facebook page. While the nurses apparently didn't violate Wisconsin state laws, hospital and local officials said that they're investigating whether the nurses violated HIPAA.

The incident began when a patient was admitted to the emergency room with an object lodged in his rectum. According to the police, the two nurses took pictures of the patient's X-ray when they learned that the object was a sexual device. One of the two allegedly posted a discussion about the incident on her Facebook page, though police haven't found anyone who saw the pictures, they said.

The hospital has referred the case to the FBI for further investigation.

To learn more about the firings:
- read this Milwaukee News piece [1]

Related Articles:
NM hospital workers fired for posting patient photos online [2]
Report: UCLA privacy breaches happen often [3]
Park Nicollet suspends employees for EMR snooping [4]
Union fights suspensions for workers viewing star's records [5]


Source URL:
http://www.fiercehealthcare.com/story/wi-nurses-fired-over-cell-photos-x-ray/2009-02-27