HIPAA Horror Stories

ELLERY REGIONAL HEALTH. Digital Engagement Report, Third Quarter. Prepared by Web and Digital Marketing for the Vice President, Marketing and Communications.

Excerpts from a chat history, exported from a personal phone at the request of the practice’s privacy officer. You: Turn this into a referral letter to podiatry. Gerald Pike, DOB 3/14/68. 58M, DM2 poorly controlled, A1c 10.2. R plantar ulcer 1st MTP, probes to bone. Smokes 1 ppd. Lives alone, daughter in Denver. Thx

The file came in on a Thursday, with a cover email from someone in the hospital’s strategy office who signed herself Best, K. The subject line was De-identified encounter data, Q1–Q3 (as discussed). I don’t know what was discussed. I build audiences; other people discuss.

I had been the privacy officer for four days when Howard drove me out to the clinic at the county line to see what he called the server closet and what turned out to be a closet. Howard has run IT for the system for twenty-two years. He drives with both hands on the wheel and does not play the radio.

MEMORANDUM To: Priya Raman, Compliance. From: Doreen Haskell, Practice Administrator. Re: Your question about Corvane You asked why there is no business associate agreement on file for Corvane Health Services, and I appreciate your coming to me rather than to the doctors. I have been here nineteen years and would like the record to be complete.

To whoever sends the faxes to (402) 555-0148: This is the fourth time I have written, so I will try to keep it short, although I notice I never do.

Dear Sir or Madam: I am writing for my wife, Carol Bryce, who was a patient at Halsey Memorial last October. She has an appointment at the university on March 27 for a second opinion before her surgery, and the surgeon there has asked to see her scans and the pathology report. Carol is not well enough to write letters, so I enclose a note in her own hand asking you to send them to her at this address.

You have asked me to explain, in my own words and at whatever length I like, the entries on the report you showed me Tuesday. I am grateful for the latitude. Most of the entries were made at night, and a column of times tells you very little about a night.

The call came at 2:40 in the morning. I remember because I had just sat down for the first time since eleven.

“Where’s the bag?” “Which bag?” “The black one by the back door. The heavy one.”