Here are more responses to this EMS1.com mailbag:
I believe Mr. Drennan was absolutely right in displaying those photos.
He had legal consent from the family and it was not used to sensationalize or to gain profit from this sad event.
If it saves one young person from operating an ATV or any other motorized vehicle in a dangerous way then it was worth the suspension!
Remember the family gave written consent! No doubt they do not want this to happen to anyone else’s child.
I give credit to both for wanting others to learn from this!
— Dan Groeger, Paramedic
I think the photos that Mr. Drennan used weren’t a HIPPA Violation as long as he received permission from the parents. Seeing that the patient’s father gave written permission, he was very appropriate in his actions. I wish more people would allow providers to do this. I applaud Mr. Drennan’s actions and intentions for education to bring to teenagers. The more graphic, the better. After all, look at what teens are doing now a days to fit in the “in” crowd.
— Tamy Higgins, CCEMT-P, Columbia, MO
Not sure what grounds they have for suspension. The paramedic seems to have followed HIPAA guidelines in attaining written permission from the patient’s guardians for use of the photos. However, the article implies that there is more that has not been disclosed.
In any case, HIPAA laws do not seem to be violated. If that is the basis of the suspension, I suspect the paramedic will be reinstated with back pay. If I was the paramedic, I would likely file a significant counter-suit for damages to my reputation caused by a suspension that has apparently been leaked to the public (ironic considering the nature of the accusation).
This accusation may haunt him/her for a long time and should be compensated if he is not guilty and should include a public apology. I am in favor of disciplining violations, but the accusers need to be more familiar with the laws that they claim have been violated before issuing punishments that they appear to have done without much thought to the effect on the employee. If there is more to this than is included in the article, so be it, but this looks like a gross injustice to the employee based on the information given.
— Rick
I am sending in my vote that the Paramedic did nothing wrong by posting the photos. This is based off of what is printed in the article. If he had permission from all parties involved then I don’t see the problem. Now there is information missing that needs to be asked......Such as did the agency that the Paramedic worked for have a policy against the posting of photos or is does the state have such a rule? Is there a paper trail to support the Paramedic is the posting in the legal sense?
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ABSOLUTELY NOT!!!!!!! This has been a witch hunt from the very beginning. There was no protected health information displayed by Mr. Drennan on this website, the pictures were taken on a public road therefore no parental consent was needed in the first place - I wish people could understand this point!!
He did not need consent according to the law. And the fact that he received consent proves he was only trying to protect ACAD and himself which is the responsible thing to do. Also pictures that you take with your own camera, even if you are on duty are not the property of the agency you are working for UNLESS they have a policy outlining such, and ACAD did not.
This employee was not warned, or even talked to by administration or the Board of Directors before being notified of Suspension without pay, and then one day before the hearing was to be held, he received notification that “the investigation was complete” and he was terminated.
I certainly hope that EMS agencies across the country learn a lesson from this courageous EMT’s story, HAVE POLICIES IN PLACE!!! Most EMS agencies don’t have policies that even recognize photographs taken on scenes, GET POLICIES IN PLACE! I also hope they learn a lesson by Adair County Ambulance the harm of having someone as your Administrator who is not educated on Privacy laws or experienced as a manager!!!!
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It is believed in our circle of EMS that while permission was obtained from the parents, the EMT should have gained permission from all parties involved in this matter prior to mass publication.
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If he violated Adair’s policies, then perhaps he should be accountable for his actions, however, I do not recall anywhere in HIPAA that restricts photos obtained in full view of the public and on public property as a person’s private medical information — especially when permission to use the photo is obtained.
The suspension was probably given by the typical poorly trained, power hungry, and ineffective middle manger that plagues the EMS industry.
— Jay Stevens, Honolulu, HI
The paramedic in question should not be suspended and should possibly be commended for going the extra mile to educate the public. Prevention is better than treatment and indeed the 1st step in the Pediatric chain of survival as I recall.
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If it happened on work time it must be approved by administration first even after the parental/family consent. It must also be on paper. Regardless he should be suspended as judgment decided after the disciplinary processes is implemented.
— John Pierce
Obviously this is a sticky situation. The mere fact that he posted the pictures with the permission of the family may not be the entire issue as I see it. It is not totally clear in the article, but it seems to me that he may violate not only HIPAA policy, but other internal procedures as well by posting this information. Though I do not disagree with the providers approach to the idea of educating through this method, he more than likely should have sought the advice of supervisors or chief officers prior to posting the pictures taken at an accident scene by a “health-care provider.” He was on duty representing the county EMS district and not a photo journalist, who print this stuff every day in any publication they want. Thus any pictures taken may be subject to procedures and protocols of the department or company. Even worse they may be property of a given company or department because they were taken while in the performance of duty.
In this day and age of camera phones and other multi-media devices it is very easy for anyone, including our own people, to get detailed pictures of incidents that we respond to. Every department and company should have a policy in place for the use of those images taken by its responders at scenes realizing that the HIPAA may be violated by any of the employees. This policy should spell out what can be done and not be done with those images and what permission needs to be obtained prior to the images leaving the person in questions device. In this case, it may be as simple as the employee talking with supervisors, presenting the written permission from the family and a paper trail made prior to the pictures being posted and this may not have been an issue.
Whatever the case it is up to the leaders of all organizations to let the subordinates know what is acceptable and what is not prior to these types of things happening. A good policy avoids all of these types of problems. This particular department may have a policy in place that covers this type of activity over and above the HIPAA policy and the employee may have gone outside the bounds of the policy. This action warrants the punishment outlined by their policy. If we do not maintain some order of discipline within the organization in a swift, fair, and even manner then the organization leaders will be discredited very quickly. This will lead to the self destruction of the organization from the inside out.
I believe that this story warrants a closer look as the events transpire and information needs to be passed along to the rest of us out here in the field so that we can look at the impacts and make changes to protect our own organizations and the employees within them. We are the first line of defense and each person in a given organization is valuable. Thanks for sharing the information thus far.
— Lieutenant Brian Taylor, FF/EMT-P, EMS Instructor, Bazetta Twp. (Ohio) Fire/EMS Department
I am a healthcare professional, as well as an EMT. I feel that the HIPPA thing has created more problems than it is supposed to cure. And the cost of providing/administrating paperwork is horrendous. What ever happened to common sense? Or educating healthcare workers? Professionals know not to divulge patient information.
As far as the paramedic in this case, if he has permission of the kid’s family, I say a picture is worth a thousand words. If it will save even one life, it is worth it. All teenagers should be required to hang out in a Level 1 trauma center ER for one weekend...then taken to the morgue for more show & tell. Harsh, yes, but educational. We parents can talk ourselves blue in the face, the kids do not listen...they do not understand dead, until it is too late.
— Polly Miller, Ellensburg, Washington