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O U T P AT I E N T S U R G E R Y M A G A Z I N E O N L I N E | D E C E M B E R 2 0 1 4
M
ore and more surgical facilities are
boosting OR efficiency by mounting
closed caption cameras in their ORs.
The cameras link to a master camera-feed moni-
tor that charge nurses can watch, so they can
alert the turnover team when surgery is nearing
completion, dispatch extra help or equipment,
and let providers know when rooms are ready for the next case.
But do the cameras pose a threat to patient privacy and violate
HIPAA? That could depend on the monitor's location: a secure control
room (good) or behind the control desk where the charge nurse sits
(not as good). A department of health inspector told a nurse manager
to unplug the OR camera system because it violated HIPAA. The mon-
itor sat behind the control desk where the charge nurse sits. The desk
area is not enclosed, and sometimes the charge nurse walks away.
The nurse manager, who asked that we not use her name, argued
that the OR cameras weren't compromising patient privacy. One, she
said, the cameras weren't recording, only displaying a room-status
camera feed on the monitor. Two, the cameras weren't hooked into
the facility's network. And three, the images in no way identified the
patient. Plus, access to the monitors is closely guarded — only
employees can go behind the desk and the monitors are password-
protected.
Get patient consent when adding these systems, says Karen Reiter,
RN, CNOR, RNFA, an administrator at DISC Sports and Spine Center
in Southern California. She says her facility has cameras in clinical
areas, but that part of the patient consent form specifically includes
: Are Cameras in the OR a HIPAA Violation?
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