NURSING-201 Central New Mexico Community College – Your patient, a 22-year-old man, was involved in a motor vehicle accident and has spent a week in the ICU. He is restless, continually shedding his covers

QUESTION

Your patient, a 22-year-old man, was involved in a motor vehicle accident and has spent a week in the ICU. He is restless, continually shedding his covers—even while being transported for diagnostic tests. Due to his condition, you have help in transporting him for his tests and engage in conversation regarding his evolving condition in the public elevator. While waiting for the scanner to be ready for him, the diagnostics nurse begins to ask questions regarding his condition while in the crowded, curtained holding area. After your clinical, you discuss your day of care in the nurses’ lounge while awaiting your classmates for your clinical wrap-up, using the patient’s room number as an identifier. (Learning Objectives 9 and 11)

a. What data in the scenario are pertinent?

b. Applying what you know of patient privacy rights, were there potential violations committed in the case study? If so, outline the violations.

c. How could the violations have been avoided?

d. Were there actions committed in the case study that were successful in protecting the patient’s privacy rights? If so, what were they?

ANSWER

Protecting Patient Privacy: Identifying Violations and Ensuring Confidentiality in Healthcare Settings

a). The pertinent data in the scenario include the patient’s age (22-year-old man), the fact that he was involved in a motor vehicle accident and spent a week in the ICU, his restlessness and behavior of shedding covers, the conversation regarding his evolving condition in a public elevator, the questions asked by the diagnostics nurse in a crowded holding area, and the discussion of the patient’s care in the nurses’ lounge using the room number as an identifier.

b). Based on patient privacy rights, there were potential violations committed in the case study. Patient privacy is a fundamental aspect of healthcare, and it is crucial to protect sensitive information about a patient’s medical condition (Nass, 2009). The violations in this case study include discussing the patient’s evolving condition in a public elevator where others may overhear the conversation, asking questions about the patient’s condition in a crowded holding area where other patients or visitors may be present, and discussing the patient’s care in the nurses’ lounge using the room number as an identifier.

c). To avoid potential violations of patient privacy rights, several steps could have been taken. Firstly, conversations regarding the patient’s evolving condition should not have taken place in public areas like elevators. Healthcare providers should find a private and secure location to discuss sensitive patient information (Vigod et al., 2003). Secondly, the diagnostics nurse should have been aware of the surroundings and avoided asking questions about the patient’s condition in a crowded holding area where others could hear the conversation. Thirdly, using the patient’s room number as an identifier during discussions in the nurses’ lounge should be strictly avoided as it compromises patient privacy. Instead, healthcare providers should use appropriate patient identifiers that do not disclose sensitive information.

d). In the case study, there were actions committed that were successful in protecting the patient’s privacy rights. For example, the healthcare provider ensured assistance in transporting the patient for diagnostic tests, which helps maintain the patient’s dignity and privacy by minimizing unnecessary exposure. Additionally, the healthcare provider could have taken steps to redirect the conversation when the diagnostics nurse asked questions about the patient’s condition in a crowded holding area, reminding her of the importance of patient privacy and suggesting a more appropriate setting for such discussions. However, it is important to note that these actions were not sufficient to fully protect the patient’s privacy, as there were still violations that occurred (Geiderman et al., 2006).

In summary, the case study highlights potential violations of patient privacy rights through discussions in public areas and the use of identifiers that could reveal sensitive information. To avoid such violations, healthcare providers should ensure private and secure settings for discussions, be mindful of the surroundings, and use appropriate patient identifiers. By respecting patient privacy rights, healthcare professionals can maintain confidentiality and foster trust in the healthcare system.

References

Nass, S. J. (2009). The Value and Importance of Health Information Privacy. Beyond the HIPAA Privacy Rule – NCBI Bookshelf. https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/books/NBK9579/

Vigod, S. N., Bell, C. M., & Bohnen, J. M. (2003). Privacy of patients’ information in hospital lifts: observational study. BMJ, 327(7422), 1024–1025. https://doi.org/10.1136/bmj.327.7422.1024

Geiderman, J. M., Moskop, J. C., & Derse, A. R. (2006). Privacy and Confidentiality in Emergency Medicine: Obligations and Challenges. Emergency Medicine Clinics of North America, 24(3), 633–656. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.emc.2006.05.005

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