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Tip of the week: Know whistleblower rules
Healthcare Security Weekly, September 17, 2007
In creating workplace violence policies, hospitals might brush up on the whistleblower rules that apply to their setting, says Michael Mabee, OSHA supervisory investigator for the New York state region. Consider an OSHA case from Bergen Regional Medical Center in Paramus, NJ where an employee filed a workplace incident report with a union, naming a patient as an assailant and using an OSHA-recommended form to file the complaint.
The hospital decided by naming the assailant, the employee violated the facility's Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act of 1996 (HIPAA) policy and enforced a mandated three-day suspension without pay. However, the suspension constituted a violation of OSHA whistleblower rules that prevent employer retaliation, causing the Department of Labor to open an investigation.
The hospital settled its case in July by reversing the suspension, paying the employee for the three days, and expunging any reference to the disciplinary action in the personnel record. To read more about the case, go to www.hcpro.com/ppv-76190.html. The cost is $10. Briefings on Hospital Safety subscribers received this story with their subscriptions.
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