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Tip of the week: Examine the gray areas of police actions versus patient rights

Hospital Safety Connection, October 31, 2007

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We read an interesting story about one hospital's disagreement with police over collecting a specimen from a crime suspect who was also a patient.

A state senator in Missouri was arrested on October 20 for alleged drunken driving. The suspect went to University Hospital in Columbia, MO, for treatment of a bruise. While there, the suspect-who was previously paralyzed from the chest down-urinated into a container to relief himself while receiving treatment.

A police officer who had accompanied the suspect seized the urine so that authorities could conduct a chemical test to determine alcohol levels, according to the Columbia Daily Tribune.

Hospital employees took issue with the officer's action because the suspect didn't consent to having his specimen taken, which stems from patient privacy concerns. But the officer allegedly told a physician, the suspect's lawyer, and facility security officers to move aside.

Both the hospital and the police department told the Daily Tribune that their representatives acted appropriately.

It may be worth your time to check out what your hospital's policy is on seizing specimens without patient consent, and then compare it to what your local police department's stance is on the same matter.

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