While "John Doe" was being treated for a "sexually transmitted disease," a nurse recognized the man as her sister-in-law's boyfriend and informed her relative of John's condition. When the guy later learned of this breach of his privacy, he complained to the clinic and was informed that the nurse had been terminated.
John later filed suit in the United States District Court for the Western District of New York alleging eight causes of action, including one for common law breach of fiduciary duty to maintain the confidentiality of his personal health information. But the District Court ended up dismissing all of John's claims.
On appeal, the Second Circuit Court of Appeals affirmed the dismissal of all but one claim and certified the following question to the New York State Court of Appeals: "Whether, under New York law, the common law right of action for breach of the fiduciary duty of confidentiality for the unauthorized disclosure of medical information may run directly against medical corporations, even when the employee responsible for the breach is not a physician and acts outside the scope of her employment?"
Our State's highest court was of the view that hospitals and clinics aren't "insurers of patient safety" and that they aren't strictly liable for an employee's misconduct. Their obligation to safeguard patients' confidential medical information is limited to risks that are "reasonably foreseeable and to actions within the scope of employment." And since the nurse's behavior wasn't foreseeable and outside the scope of her work, the New York Court of Appeals didn't think there was an actionable claim.
Sickening?
To view a copy of the Court of Appeal's decision, please use this link: John Doe v. Guthrie Clinic, Ltd.