VA Southeast Network (VISN 7)

Issue: A Dorn VA Medical Center Nurse Practitioner working within the surgery service, contacted the Privacy Officer to report a theft. Employee A changed her space by moving to 3 South in room # 3A184 with another employee one week ago.…

Outcome: All Veteran were offered Credit Monitoring. The Employee's provided education on the need to safeguard and secure all Veteran's PHI.…

Issue: On 03/20/13, Veteran A reported for his clinic appointment, but discovered that he did not have one scheduled in the system. On closer examination of his appointment letter, the clerk and provider discovered that he was given an appointment letter…

Outcome: Documents returned to the medical center Privacy Officer. Issue discussed with provider and clinic coordinator.

Issue: A Nurse lost her patient list, which had the names and last four digits of the SSN of five patients. Update: 03/14/13:The 5 patients will receive a HIPAA letter of notification.…

Outcome: Employee retraced her steps but could not locate document. It contained four names; one of the patients died. Employee was reminded to safely handle sensitive information when she conducts patient visits. Notification letters mailed to one Veteran and two representative…

Issue: A Patient's friend brought a bag of candy, intended for the Patient on a visit to one of the wards. The staff informed him that patients were not allowed to have food from the outside, so the bag of candy…

Outcome: Nurse Manager has reviewed privacy and security policies with all Inpatient Psychiatry staff. They agree to check all items leaving the unit to make sure no patient information is attached items. Receiving certs for Privacy training.…

Issue: On 2/25/2013, the Dorn VAMC Outpatient Pharmacy inadvertently mailed Veteran A a medication package, which was intended for Veteran B. Veteran A's wife (Dorn VAMC employee), immediately returned the medication to the Outpatient Pharmacy when they realized the medication did…

Outcome: Pharmacy staff were re-educated on proper handling and mailing of pharmacy packages (3/12/2013)

Issue: An employee/patient requested a list of individual's who has accessed her medical records. Upon review of log, requester identified 5 co-workers who had entered her electronic medical record in her department. The employees have access to CPRS in the performance…

Outcome: The employees retook Privacy & HIPAA training and submitted cert to PO. They have been re-educated to proper procedures on access to information and computer options, use and disclosure. Memo was sent to Service Chief & HR.…

Issue: Upon reporting for duty on Monday, 02/11/13, a VA Pulmonary Respiratory Therapist noticed a laptop was disconnected and removed from portable pulmonary testing unit. According to the employee, he locked his doors prior to leaving on Friday, 02/08/13 at approximately…

Outcome: To prevent any future occurrence, all laptops contained on medical devices have been physically protected and the Dorn Chief of Staff notified clinical staff to securely store and purge all personally identifiable information from medical devices.

Issue: Veteran A received an appointment letter reminding him of an upcoming Gastroenterology Clinic appointment. The Veteran was surprised to see that four additional pages were inadvertently included in his envelope. The additional four page document was information, which was intended…

Outcome: Staff is being re-educated on the need to safeguard patient information.

Issue: A reported case of medical identity theft appears to still be unresolved. The incident involves Veteran A who has received care in both Augusta, GA and at the North Florida/S. Georgia facility in Gainesville, FL. His former roommate, Veteran B,…

Outcome: The error reported to the VA National Healthcare Identity Management (HC IdM) Team for resolution, as the correction cannot be made to the record at the local facility level. Patient record flag added to the record.

Issue: A pharmacy technician returned to the outpatient pharmacy window, Veteran A pushed the hard copy for Veteran B to her through the access point of the window and said "a lady had left this." Veteran A had access, via the…

Outcome: Privacy Officer has mailed the Credit Monitoring letter to Veteran. Re-education of staff has been provided regarding appropriate methods for handling and securing patient sensitive information by the immediate supervisor. The Privacy Officer is requesting that the ticket be closed.…