Question

What are 3 potential legal issues and 3 solutions that must be discussed and analyzed in this passage?
A 40-year-old female patient requested examination by a family physician after she discovered her husband had hidden from her that he had multiple STDs, including venereal warts, caused by human papillomavirus (HPV). On the patient’s first visit, a pap smear and STD tests were performed. The STD tests came back positive for both HPV and chlamydia. In addition, the pap smear showed cervical abnormalities.
The patient was referred to a specialist for follow-up care, and a biopsy confirmed the presence of cervical cancer. Both the specialist and the family physician reached out to the patient to discuss the results. Additionally, the family physician reported the chlamydia result to the local health department.
After ignoring multiple calls and messages, the patient returned the calls of both physicians and informed them she would treat the chlamydia but was not interested in pursuing any treatment for the cancer. Both physicians were highly uncomfortable with this decision, as the patient was only 40 and the cancer was treatable. They contacted a local judge to discuss options for making the patient pursue treatment because they felt the she was making the wrong decision.
Simultaneously, a medical assistant in the family physician’s office noticed the patient’s biopsy results come through on the fax machine. The medical assistant revealed information about the patient’s condition to some of her friends, all of whom knew the patient from church. The patient found out that her medical information had been disclosed when her name ended up on her church’s prayer list in the weekly bulletin, listing her as battling cervical cancer.
The patient was eventually able to identify the source of the leak, and she subsequently filed a HIPAA privacy complaint with the Office of Civil Rights of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services naming the medical assistant and the family physician’s office.
The family physician’s office learned of the privacy complaint and promptly sent the patient a letter terminating her from any future services.

Answer 1

Three potential legal issues that must be discussed and analyzed in this passage are:

1. The patient's husband hiding his multiple STD condition diagnosis from the patient. It is a criminally prosecutable condition to knowingly spread STDs like HPV and Chlamydia, which could lead to cervical cancer.

Solution: The patient can deal with this legally by filing a case against her husband on the basis of this.

2. Breach of patient confidentiality by the family physician who revealed patient information to others like the local judge.

Solution: Filing a HIPAA privacy complaint with the Office of Civil Rights of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services naming the family physician.

3. Breach of patient confidentiality by the medical assistant in the family physician’s office who noticed the patient’s biopsy results come through on the fax machine and shared with her friends.

Solution: Filing a HIPAA privacy complaint with the Office of Civil Rights of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services naming the medical assistant and the family physician’s office.