Overhearing your doctor's staff laughing over one of your conditions; a no-no?

your welcome hun and I know that you can sue and they will most likely settle out of court becuase if this even hits they might have other patients that were to scared to come forward come forward once you have. Not to mention it will tarnish their reputation and they definitely don't want that.

Thank you Bella AND Barb! I will most definitely report his to my insurance company. I hadn't thought of that before! Maybe my doctor and his staff thought this was nothing but they broke the law. It's not just a case of being rude, thoughtless or inconsiderate. I will not let them get off scott-free! I doubt I could sue them because it would be their word against mine and I'm sure they'll deny ever joking about it. But, I do plan to let the insurance company and the medical board know about what happened. I don't care if they know I am doing this or not. They've been rude, unethical, inconsiderate, and broken the law. They should not be allowed to continue this practice and they won't, if I have anything to say about it! Maybe they thought that, BECAUSE I suffer from brain fog, they could get away with joking at my expense. Well, the joke is going to be on them. Thank you so much for such great advice. I appreciate each and every one of you for your feedback on this issue.

You are so right in the disclosing of a patient's information. My daughter has worked for a ophthamologist for over 18 years and that is one of the first things they learned. You tell nobody about a patient's condition! If I was Mentalward, I definitely do something about the situation.

THANK YOU, moon! cvrajan, I have over 13 confirmed medical conditions. I'm not overly concerned about my health, I'm concerned about getting proper care FOR those problems. I am not a hypochondriac. I have CONFIRMED fibromyalgia, lupus, nerve damage, carpal tunnel syndrome, tears in my knee ligaments, IBS, chronic fatigue syndrome, high blood pressure, insomnia, vertigo, migraines, and more. I do NOT go to my doctor's office to cheer up his staff! It is their obligation to make every patient as comfortable as possible, no matter how cynical they've become. When you work with the public, ESPECIALLY those who are sick, you owe it to them to at LEAST refrain from laughing about their conditions where they can hear it! Also, since I could hear them talking, so could other patients. They violated the HIPPA law by joking like that. If I could prove it, my doctor could lose his license to practice medicine! I am not an "excessively health conscious and overly worried patient"! I DO hope that you are in no way connected to the health profession!

if you had the same health problems she had you would not think ANY of it is funny.. even if the doc's and nurses do laugh and are human about it they could make sure its not to where anyone would over hear..

Hi Mentalward, I sincerely apologize for the comments I have made which are out of place in your case. I understand now that you are a genuine sufferer of multiple ailments and It is outright wrong on my part to have made such off the cuff comments on this matter. I write from India where callous attitudes of doctors and nurses are quite common. But US is definitely different. You pay through your nose for your medical expenses and you definitely deserve a proportionate quality of service with good courtesy and decency. Sorry, once again. CVR

Thanks, cassandra. I doubt that I'd get anywhere if I tried taking legal action because they could simply deny ever laughing over one of my conditions. It would be my word against theirs. But, reporting them may be do-able. I just have to figure out exactly who to report them to. American Medical Association? HIPPA? I'll have to do some research. I have thought of making an appointment just to speak directly with my doctor, informing him of what I heard (even HE may have been in on this 'joke' session!), then picking up my records to take them to a new doctor. I agree, it was extremely unprofessional and most likely illegal but, like I said, they could deny it because I have no proof. I will, however, take your advice about reporting the doctor. HE is responsible for his staff and, if they have broken the law, he needs to be reported. Thanks so much for the advice!

How rude and yes I agree too,its your health and they are not treating you for free, he is charging you isn't he so just change the doctor. My brother also went tosee a dental doctor and she told him to get his wisdom too extracted without tellign him why and just scheduled a date without even consulting him if he is ready to do so and when he is free. My brother refused to see her anymore and took some pain killer for the meanwhile and now is looking for a better doctor. You do the same and may be you can ask other patients of his if they also feel the same about him.

This doctor is actually the one who referred me to the rheumatologist I see now for the fibromyalgia. He understands that it is a real disease. I don't think his staff does, though, and it's very obvious that none of them suffer from it! As soon as my disability nightmare is over, I'll be changing doctors. I just talked it over with my husband and he agrees that my rheumatologist, who is also an internist, should be my primary care physician. I adore her as a doctor and I also adore her staff. I'm planning on making one last appointment with this doctor, just to tell him what I overheard, how often they've screwed up, and that I'm leaving because of that. When I go in to pick up my records, I'll be telling the staff exactly what I think of them, just before heading out the door!

If the doctor seems to be genuinely concerned for you, you should definitely tell him what his staff was doing. He may fire them over it (he should) and then you could keep your doctor if you wanted to. What his staff did was ILLEGAL and if your doctor values his own reputation, he would take the appropriate action - but he needs to KNOW about it first. If it were me, I'd be very publicly telling anyone and everyone about the staff's illegal and callous behavior - the press especially and a bunch of blogs & websites. I'd be naming names and making sure EVERYONE knew that there is no patient confidentiality at this particular office.

You report them to that doctor reporting place. LOL I'll have to do some research but I know I signed that HIPPA paper, the one they always have you sign when you're a new patient. That's the Information Privacy Act. They weren't so very private about laughing over my conditions! Since this doctor was actually the first doctor I found when we first moved here, I stuck with him. But, it's definitely time to move on. That guy, you know the one, up there ^ , apparently thinks that we, as patients, go to our doctors to make the staff feel better, not the other way around! I guess he forgot to ask me if I was friendly and courteous to the staff. It's ironic but I just saw my rheumatologist on Thursday and was talking with her staff about switching doctors and having her be my primary care doctor BECAUSE of my PCP's staff. She's also an internist so she COULD see me as my PCP, but she's 56 miles away! But, I ADORE her staff! I always do joke around with them and try to make light of my conditions and they appreciate my attitude and joke right back with me... not ABOUT me! My PCP's staff was not laughing with me; they were laughing "behind" my back! There is no excuse for rudeness, ESPECIALLY in a doctor's office! Yeah, I'll be reporting them.

there are some sites that people post personal experiences with doctors on.. lemme see if i can find it.. lol.. other than that there is a place but i cant remember what the hell its called (still) lol http://www.ratemds.com/social/

As a Chronic Fatigue Syndrome sufferer I sometimes feel like I am mentally ill. Especially when the brain fog is so bad that I get too confused to function at all. I would not put up with behaviour like that. Not only would I change doctors in that situation but I would want to report them for abuse of their position.

I thought that exact same thing, dragon, that if I wrote to the doctor, he would never see it. So, I've decided to make one last appointment with him, just to let him know exactly what happened, what I heard, what OTHER patients heard as well, and why I'm leaving. I just talked it over with my husband and have decided to start seeing my rheumatologist as my primary care physician. She's also an internist, so I could see her for high blood pressure AND fibromyalgia at the same time. Even though her office is 56 miles away, I wouldn't have so many doctor's appointments; e.g., seeing her for my rheumatologic problems, then seeing this doctor for my high blood pressure, etc. I'd see one doctor for everything, cutting down the number of visits. I'm also going to write that letter to the medical board. (THANK YOU for giving it a name... I had no idea where to start looking for the right people to complain to.) You are so very right about them not being professional. I've had other issues with this doctor's staff, but this was the last straw. I try not to react to things like this immediately; I like to sit back and think about the best way to handle them. Being the impulsive Aries that I am, I've put my foot in my mouth way too much in my youth and have learned to hold back, get the facts straight, THEN act. You know, now that I'm remembering back, I recall getting ready to leave his office after one visit, making the appointment for the next visit, when someone came in there with a puppy... someone who had worked there not too long before. A puppy??? Okay, I know she wanted to show off her little darlin to her former coworkers, but what about people who may have some serious allergies to pet dander??? I don't have an allergy to pets, but now I'm thinking that was an incredibly STUPID and unprofessional thing to do, not to mention laws regarding things like that! It wouldn't surprise me to see some chickens and maybe a hog roaming free through that office or see the receptionist chatting online while people are waiting for her attention. Unbelieveable! Once again, thank you for giving me a name to the proper place to start complaining! Also, thanks for being my sounding board. It helps tremendously to get feedback from others when making a big decision like this.

There is still a possibility that they were sharing a private joke. Since "brain fog" is not an unfamiliar term to them, it is not s surprise for them to use it regularly. Example: Alice: Hey Harry, did you help me buy that Hello Kitty plushie I told you too? Harry: Geez Alice, I am so sorry! I forgot! Alice: There you go again, never remembering the things I say. You must be getting senile in your old age. Harry: You are right, Alice. Brain fog? I have that every day! Hahahahaha! Alice: Sure you do, you old foggie with your hourly brain fog. There... that might be one possibilities out of infinite. Anyway if that place really makes you uncomfortable, I suggest you go ahead and try find a better doctor with professional staff. They might genuinely be laughing at you and by dwelling at it, you just play into their hand. Instead, choose to move above it and move on.

If they were sharing a private joke, why didn't they ensure that it was kept PRIVATE? Everyone in the office could hear them. They DON'T hear "brain fog" on a regular basis. This is not the doctor who treats me for fibromyalgia. I have a rheumatologist for that. This doctor is an internist. Also, it was TOO coincidental that I handed my doctor that list, he leaves the room and minutes later, before he comes back to the exam room, I heard that conversation and laughter. These people treat the patients with very little regard. I've seen it from the receptionist on a regular basis, with me and every other patient. Also, since I know the doctor heard this conversation and laughter as well as I did, why did he not stop it immediately? Apparently, he thought it was funny, too. This doctor is good about diagnosing things and treating things that fall under his jurisdiction, also about giving referrals to the proper specialists, but he has his own shortcomings. He forgets things. NOT a good thing for any doctor to be doing on a regular basis! He's forgotten to write up requests for bloodwork after telling me he wanted me to have it. He's forgotten to give me prescriptions after saying he wanted me to have this or that. He's forgotten to write referral letters after saying he wanted me to see this or that specialist. He forgot to call in a prescription for me that he had just told me he would do. He has a huge scar on his head that wraps almost entirely around his scalp. If I make any assumption about him, it would be that he's had some very traumatic injury or surgery to his brain which may have affected his memory and maybe other things as well. Pity these people? I think not! If I heard this laughter about brain fog coming from a grocery store cashier or mechanic working on my car, I'd probably be able to pity them, but NOT a member of a medical team! As for your mentioning that you have no idea why someone else's misery should amuse someone who had voluntarily chosen to work in the medical field, aren't there cases of priests molesting children? Aren't there cases of police officers or detectives murdering people? No, just because they are in the medical profession, it doesn't make them immune to stupidity or cruelty. Now, as for not bothering with them and pitying them, nope. There is ZERO tolerance for misconduct like this in the medical profession. This doctor also knows that I suffer from depression, caused by my many medical issues. Laughing at one of my symptoms because it sounds funny is inexcusable! Just a thought here, what if you found out that everyone here was laughing at the name "lordwarwizard"? Wouldn't you be a little bit offended, even if it had nothing to do with you at all? Well, laughing at a medical condition is MUCH worse. Even if I gave them the benefit of the doubt and it really WAS a coincidence, there is NO excuse for them making fun of ANY medical condition, at least not while they are at work and ESPECIALLY when they know patients can hear them. No, people in the medical profession take an oath of patient confidentiality. The fact that "brain fog" is not a condition they treat in this office says that they were laughing over the list of my conditions. This was no coincidence. No, they were not laughing about ME, specifically, only the name of that condition. But, seeing as how I suffer from it, and they all knew I was right there in the office, they should have NEVER mentioned it. This is definitely a case of them being extremely insensitive and unprofessional.

The "brain fog" thing kinda rules out this being just a coincidence though, don't you think?

my mom has fibro in addition to a few other things,and..i swear to god if i see that "look" the ones who don't say anything give out one more time.. it's just plain rude.i don't know which is worse sometimes.

I'm going to do just that, as soon as my disability case is resolved. I'm waiting now to hear whether I'm approved or not. Once that is over, I'll be able to concentrate on doing exactly what needs to be done regarding this doctor and his staff. They may have thought it was nothing, but it's sure a big deal to me! I used to be a medical proofreader and came across a syndrome once called "Stiff Man Syndrome". Of course, I got a kick out of it. BUT, I would NEVER joke about it or laugh because it sounds funny if I were in the medical profession! Even if there was one chance in a billion that someone nearby had that syndrome, I would never mention how funny that sounded where people come to get help. Yes, 'brain fog' does sound funny, but it's not at all funny to those who suffer from it. Let's just hope that the gal who said that one day contracts 'brain fog' herself; then she'll understand how cruel it was to laugh about it within hearing range of me or anyone else who might be suffering from it. Once I get a determination about my disability case (assuming it's in my favor, which it looks to be), I'll be making an appointment to talk with my doctor and let him know exactly what I overheard and, because I heard it, others could as well. I'll let him know that not only was it totally inappropriate for his staff to be joking about it but it was also illegal due to the HIPPA Law and totally cruel. I will also let him know that I want my records to take with me to my new PCP. I will be reporting this incident to the medical board as well as my insurance company. They may have thought this little joke-fest was innocent and all in fun, but it was anything but! They're in for a rude awakening!

Since you seem to get along better with this "farther away" doctor...perhaps it might be a good idea to ask HER, if SHE can recommend, or refer you, to someone SHE knows a really GOOD GP/MD, who may be closer to your home? Give her all the ins and outs of what's been happening with your present doctor, and see what she says. Doctors converse with other doctors that they usually chum, associate, or share information with. Giver her call. cdrxo

Hehehehe, sounds like you might have a touch of brain fog yourself! Sorry, couldn't resist. At least I know I'm not the only one here who catches boo boos after we post things. I will talk with her about this. I trust her implicitly and, if she can recommend an internist closer, I'll definitely give them a try. If she can't, I'll just make the trip to see her from now on. Right now, though, I have to get ready for the psyche evaluation the disability judge wants me to have (as though my physical problems aren't disabling enough!) before making his decision. It's 3 hours from now and is one hour away. I'm getting REALLY nervous about this!

Sorry; ..."or IF she knows a really good"... ;-) cdrxo