Alberta RN guilty of accessing health info

By Gillian Slade on July 7, 2018.

Medicine Hat News

A registered nurse pleaded guilty to inappropriately accessing health information of others in contravention of the Health Information Act.

Two people requested audit logs in 2016 of those accessing their electronic health information in Alberta Netcare. They raised the alarm about Jasmine Badger, a nurse at the Fox Creek Healthcare Centre, where the two individuals did not receive health services, accessing their records.

The individuals reported the matter to the Alberta Health Services, which informed the Office of the Information and Privacy Commissioner.

OIPC’s investigation found Badger accessed the health information of the two people 138 times between April 1, 2013 to July 18, 2016.

Due to a two-year limitation period under the HIA, Badger pleaded guilty to accessing the health information of one of the individuals on 35 occasions between Oct. 7, 2015 and July 18, 2016, and eight unauthorized accesses to the health information of the second individual between Nov. 1, 2015 to July 18, 2016.

The accessed information included medical profile, demographic information, consultation details, lab results or analysis including blood work and diagnostic imaging results, such as x-rays and MRI.

The OIPC referred its findings to Crown prosecutors at Alberta Justice, and charges were laid in October 2017.

On June 25, 2018, Badger was fined $3,000, plus a victim fine surcharge of 30 per cent of the imposed fine.

This was the ninth conviction since the HIA was enacted in 2001. This was the first case in which a victim fine surcharge had been issued. A victim fine surcharge helps fund victim services, such as counselling.

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