Search Privacy Violations, Breaches and Complaints
This database was last updated in December 2015 ago and should only be used as a historical snapshot. More recent data on breaches affecting 500 or more people is available at the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services’ Breach Portal.
KAISER FOUNDATION HOSPITAL - SACRAMENTO
Cited by the California Department of Public Health for violations of California’s Health and Safety Code relating to medical privacy during an inspection that began on July 25, 2013. Also cited in 12 other reports.
Report ID: ZMJZ11.01, California Department of Public Health
Reported Entity: KAISER FOUNDATION HOSPITAL - SACRAMENTO
Issue:
The CDPH verified that the facility failed to inform the affected patient(s) or the patient's representative(s) of the unlawful or unauthorized access, use or disclosure of the patient's medical information. Based on staff interview and facility document reviews, the facility failed to1) prevent the unlawful or unauthorized disclosure of Patient 1 ' s medical information, when emergency room (ER) staff inadvertently gave Patient 1 ' s discharge instructions to Patient 2, and2) notify the patient of the breach within the mandated 5 business days following detection of the breach.These failures placed Patient 1 at risk of compromised health information of a sensitive nature.Findings:Review of the entity reported incident submitted to the department on 4/27/10 revealed on April 22, 2010, emergency room (ER) staff inadvertently gave Patient 1 ' s discharge instructions to Patient 2. The discharge instructions contained Patient 1 ' s name, medical record number, and blood pressure. The documents were recovered by the hospital.An interview was conducted with the facility Compliance Officer (CO) 1 on 3/5/14 at 1:50 p.m. She stated when the facility investigated this occurrence; the ER staff did not verify the patient name on the document, the wrist band, or identification card as per facility policies and procedures, prior to giving the discharge sheet to Patient 2. CO 1 verified that the facility notified the Department on 4/27/10 by email. She stated Patient 1 ' s notification letter was sent 5/11/10 which was still late. She confirmed the facility should have notified the patient and Department by 4/29/10.
Outcome:
Deficiency cited by the California Department of Public Health: Health & Safety Code 1280