A parent posted my young patient's diagnosis in a public group
This account was submitted by a healthcare provider and de-identified before publication. Details that could identify a patient or practice have been removed, and it is shared with the provider’s consent.
A parent posted a long account in a large local Facebook group that named their child's condition, described our visits in detail, and criticized my care in terms that misrepresented what actually happened.
My first reaction was not defensiveness but alarm, because a child's medical information was now sitting in a public group with thousands of members, and I was the one person legally unable to even acknowledge the thread. Doing so would confirm and amplify that child's protected information.
My nurses saw it too and were upset, both at the unfair portrayal and at their own inability to respond. Parents in the group tagged friends, and the post traveled far beyond anyone who had ever set foot in my office.
I contacted Facebook to report the disclosure of a minor's health information and received no meaningful action. The gag order only runs one direction, so a parent can say anything and I can say nothing, even when staying silent means a child's diagnosis stays public.