My mom who is in a SNF was recently mistakenly(?) diagnosed with KTU. The next day she was diagnosed with "pressure sores." Less than 36 hours later she was visited by 4 former caregivers who no longer work in the SNF Mom is in. Coincidence? Or was her medical information shared by current SNF employees? My brother and I are the only persons listed to receive Mom's medical information.
Today I was informed one of the "former employees" who visited had taken a picture of them with my Mom and posted it to her FB page. I just find this so wrong, am I overreacting again?
"I recently went thru an experience of the SNF attempts to post a picture of Mom on their business FB page. It was clearly documented in her in-take paperwork they were NOT to use her likeness/verbiage in any advertising (which imho would include social media). Apparently when a SNF is bought by another company they throw those intake documents and don't send new? "
I can't speak to a SNF's practice of substituting or not continuing practices when a purchase occurs as that's an individual acquisition which, beyond the standard acquisition assumptions, could easily be tailored to the business field as well as individual companies involved.
I.e., in one situation, the law firm for which I worked handled an acquisition of a company with an extensive customer base. Those accounts were included in the acquisition, as were the physical assets. And they would be documented in the transaction documentation, including filing of a UCC (3, I think) with the State generalizing but including the assets. The last acquisition on which I worked was probably 30 years ago, and a lot could have changed during that time.
But, language in a UCC-3 at that time could have included all accounts receivable as well as payable, and all other physical assets (tables, chairs, vehicles, etc.) as well as documentation on the receivable assets. The income from a client for a patient would be a receivable. And if I remember correctly, there were provisions addressing the assignation and assumption by the purchaser of obligations under those documents.
In other words, the purchasing facility could be obligated under existing contracts and data with clients.
There are 2 potential factors:
1. The "longevity" of the initial documents, i.e., whether there is no cutoff date or cutoff provisions, and
2. The specific language in the acquisition documents as to what obligations, assets, debts, etc. exist and how they are addressed when an acquisition occurs.
BTW, I'm posting this in the mainstream as opposed to responding to your comments below.
Summing it up, the current owner could through acquisition be obligated to the same privacy restrictions and protections as the selling company.
2. Let’s give the benefit of the doubt here. Could a group of friends who previously worked together visit other friends at a facility? Yep. Could they, as a kindness, have popped in to check on older, lonely folks they previously cared for? Yep. Did they have ask MOM if it was ok to take her photo? Probably.
Occam’s Razor: simplest answer is likely the right one. I do think you are overreacting.
If your mom asks, you can honestly tell her no, not that you've heard. While it's true that the initial diagnosis looked terminal, the wound doctor confirmed that they are normal pressure sores. So as of the final diagnosis, you have not heard that she is dying.
As for the former employees showing up, perhaps a current employee knew that they cared about your mom & told them that they may want to visit her (after the first diagnosis) and it was just a nice gesture by them because they like her. However, I would be pissed if any of them posted a picture of my mom (especially in bed, not looking very good) anywhere without asking first. Maybe you can get in touch with the poster and ask if she could take the picture down.
When Mom asked if she was dying, I told her there was nothing to indicate that. Organs are all fine at this point, this time tests are coming back with what I hope are treatable illness. Just frustrating that the apparent release of her medical condition has now brought all this on the family...it wasn't necessary.
Trust me, I am still pissed that someone felt it necessary to post a picture of Mom in bed, gown and on oxygen on social media. I cannot civilly speak to that person currently but maybe in time I can converse in a manner to explain that she may have cared for my Mom but she didn't truly know my Mom. It's not a jealousy situation as some here have suggested (not you), it is a respect thing. I'm very happy Mom has touched many lives and some decided to visit her thinking she was at EOL.
This could have been a statement such as, if you want to say goodbye to Mrs. x, you should come visit. No violation in that. Could have been, Mrs. x needs some loving visitors. No medical information needs to be given for people to be asked to visit EOL patients, they do all work in these environments after all.
As for the photo, well, my aunt asked me to take a picture of my dad when we were told he was dying. Uh, not gonna be done by me but, the point being, she has a different perspective about this and I don't believe there is a right or wrong, just differing viewpoints on acceptability.
If your mom is asking about dying, you should be honest and tell her that the doctors think she might be. It's not like she doesn't know that is the end result of all our lives. Give her the opportunity to say or see whatever or whomever she wants or feels she needs to.
What is your mother doing living in a SNF to begin with if you don't want her to interact with other people or caregivers who care about her? What's the big deal who knows about her 'medical information' when she's living IN a medical environment, for petesake?
When my folks lived in AL and dad was dying, the caregivers were lined up to come into his room to see him, kiss him, say goodbye to him. Even former employees came back to say goodbye, meaning, yes, someone TOLD them dad was dying! Tears were running down his face out of appreciation for all the love he was being shown. Tears were running down the CGs faces too, for what it's worth. Human beings that work in the care industry wind up having deep rooted feelings for the patients they care for. It's what defines humanity.
Same was true with my mother who lived in the same ALF but in the Memory Care bldg for the past nearly 3 years. The caregivers loved her and spent time after their shifts ended sitting with her! If they were privy to her medical info that they weren't entitled to, for some odd reason, or took a photo of her, WHO CARES? Also, who gives a flying fig if HIPPA violations occurred? The woman was dying; HIPPA and all the rest of the BS flew out her window and all that mattered was love and holding her hand and making sure she was feeling no pain or discomfort. In truth, HIPPA regulations over the years wound up aggravating the snot out of me more often than doing something useful for me.
The 'former employee' who took a picture of them together when visiting your mom and posted it on her FB page was doing something out of LOVE and pride, I think. Not for some sinister reason or as an invasion of your privacy.
Let it go, that's my suggestion, and save your angst for something worthy of it.
I've had clients that I grew to like, but I knew that it was a violation of HIPPA if I was no longer on the case. Once you leave a case or a facility, you are no longer entitled to patient's information or health statuses.
This is covered in Certified Nursing Assistant training.
For me the fact that these big hearted people care enough about your mom to go visit her on their days off is so special and heartwarming I can’t come up with the words. The more people she knows and likes going to visit and especially people who understand any special intricacies of visiting (my mom is very hard of hearing and has aphasia for instance) the better! Filling my moms day with cheer when she is confined to bed and her world has become so small and limited is what I pray for. The staff at this NH obviously loves and cares for your mom it’s just as likely that they remain in touch and current staff knew that these former members wanted to visit and or wanted to stay apprised of how she was doing and either were told in casual conversation that she was having these new painful issues wanted to go cheer her up or simply had planned the visit and timing was just a coincidence. Either way what a blessing for mom to have a welcome distraction from her pain. I wouldn’t want to discourage anyone from visiting unless of course they are unwanted by mom, at this point. In fact when it comes to new medical issues especially things that nurses do the most care for like bed sores the more collective experience the better, I can’t count the times that a nurse has had a new way of doing something based on their knowledge and experience that worked much better than the baseline way of doing it. When they like their patient as much as they apparently like your mom and feel comfortable with and welcomed by the family nurses can be a wealth of knowledge and extra care. Why waste your time and emotions getting worked up about what may or may not have happened, fighting for something that just isn’t as important now over welcoming all the care you can get and letting it warm your heart that mom is being embraced by so many people and isn’t alone when you can’t be there. Take a deep breath and welcome the support for you, your brother and mom.
Id go to the fb pages owner and respectfully request that the images be taken down, as you prefer to see them only in private.
Someone who knows your mom and cares about her enough to visit, is accused by you of wrongdoing for a truly petty reason. I bet when you put her there you justified the decision thinking she would have interactions and people around her and she wouldn’t be lonely.
isn’t it possible that the former care workers were there at the facility visiting all their former patients out of kindness? How nice, especially for the people who have only rare visits from family members.
Instead of being grateful for the interaction and entertainment for your mom, you want to sue? How will that help your mom? What are the damages that you expect to recover? How could this help your mom? Are you ready to move her before you file suit?
From whom do you demand this privacy? She is in a nursing home, with a multitude of caregivers all with access to her records. Family and former friends even readers of this forum would expect, without a shred of further information that she is EOL or why would she be in a SNL?
My daughter worked at the local Hospital. She got a list of patients every day. Some people I knew but she could not tell me they were there. If I asked, she could confirm they were there.
Chipmunk - the caregiver community is typically small with word spreading fast when someone is nearing the end of life. It will be very, very, very expensive and time consuming for you to prove that anyone violated HIPAA and that your mother was damaged by a violation even if it happened.
Forget Facebook! Focus on the fact that four people visited her - showed her warmth and kindness - at her end of life. Thank everyone at your mother's SNF for their care and attention. You will reap what you sow.
I understand that unless someone would come forward there is no legal standing.
I constantly thank the staff who currently care for Mom at her SNF for the compassion and care they give to Mom. I have no problem with her past caregivers visiting her. My heart breaks that they think they knew the woman she was who would never have wanted a picture of her shared on social media in a nursing home bed, gown, with supplemental oxygen. It is saddening that she may be remembered as such when this is not what she would have wanted. Now I deal with the question from Mom "am I dying?"
It was a possibly an "incorrect diagnosis" initially which may have been the info shared to former caregivers? The call my brother and I received was she had developed a KTU. The following day the wound doctor diagnosed it as a "pressure sore" (bed sore). She still has many other medical conditions but I continue to hope she will improve.
The photo is also a violation.
The HIPAA violation I would bring it to the attention of the management and I would also file a complaint.
I would request that the photos on FB be taken down as well.
I would agree with you that former caregivers no longer employed have no right to information on your mother. I rather doubt though that the former caregivers had any thoughts of breaching HIPAA laws. However, posting on the FB rag (my terms) is totally off limits.
I would gently explain to the former caregivers that you're a private person, as is your mother, and while you appreciate their visits, you feel that your mother's privacy should be respected and no photos should be taken, and most assuredly, NOT posted to some social medial site.
I had that problem when one of my father's church friends took a photo of Dad with some of his WWII Fortress buddies, then posted it online. I was livid when I learned of this, called the individual, and who couldn't understand why I thought this was a breach of privacy. Duh.....
Stealing the picture is a no no. Taking picture of the picture without permission to take it and post it, a no no. If Dad posted it on social media and the person borrowed it, nothing Dad could do.
As for the photo, no you are not overreacting. My Dad's caregiver did the same thing. I kept quiet but on the inside I was livid.
So yes, it could be a technical violation of hippa, but it’s also a testimony to how much people do care enough personally to show up.