Marketing students at Fred’s University School of Business were working on a class project to update Fred Med Hospital’s website when they “accidentally” posted the wrong review in the “Review Spotlight”. The Spotlight reviews had been carefully crafted by a previous marketing group and needed updating. What the students posted came from a similarly named file “Reviews to Remove” which was meant to be confidential.
REVIEW SPOTLIGHT
“When I arrived at Fred Med employees were smoking outside the entrance, including one whose badge said he was Director of Patient Outreach. I was greeted by an elderly volunteer who patted my behind. A woman was sobbing in the lobby, ignored by all. I waited for an hour and a half with no explanation. In the reception area, I was asked for my identifying information by three different staff members within hearing of the other waiting patients–one of whom was in handcuffs and a prison uniform. When I got into the exam room to wait for another half hour, I could overhear every word of the consultations happening in the adjoining rooms, including one that involved domestic violence injuries and another about an abortion. I could also overhear the doctor joking with the nurses at their station and talking about a pool party he was hosting. The doctor finally appeared, without any apology, failed to confirm my name, and gave me test results for another patient. At least I don’t really have cancer as the doctor told me! All told I paid $327 for this visit that was “covered” by my expensive insurance.
While the students were reprimanded for their error, their professor pointed out that the negative review generated a lot of traffic to the website and since “all buzz is good buzz”, the “mistake” ultimately benefited Fred Med. An independent committee investigated the matter and suggested that a monthly post featuring the very worst Fred Med reviews might boost patient engagement, drive traffic to the website and create an internet following. Fred Med’s Director of Patient Outreach commented that breaches of patient privacy and confidentiality were entirely a result of the well-known poor design of the hospital and in no way the responsibility of the staff.
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