Texas Nurses Prosecuted for Reporting Doctor to State Medical Board

Troubling Silence of most National Medical Organizations

Related: The Sound of Silence

The prosecution of two Texas nurses for reporting a physician to the Texas Board of Medicine is disturbing. After six months of legal processing, the charges against one nurse, Vicki Galle, were dropped last week. Jury selection is set to begin Monday, February 8, 2010.

While the prosecution of nurses for reporting unsafe care is unusual, the failure of most of the major national healthcare organizations to support the nurses is alarming. Where is JCAHO? Where is the AMA? Where is the AHA? Where are all the patient safety organizations?

The ANA, American Nursing Association, has taken an appropriate position. Why must the nursing community stand alone? The silence of the other organizations is deafening. A New York Times article by Kevin Sack has been picked up by several other papers in Sarasota, Seattle, Pittsburgh and Dallas. 

What do you think? Is the prosecution appropriate? What about the silence of the organizations that could make a difference? Does that silence tell nurses that when they blow the whistle, they can only expect support from their lawyers and the nursing organizations, that other national organizations who pay lip service to patient safety will leave them twisting in the wind?

I fear that this is the lesson of this case. Please help prove me wrong.

For more information about this troubling case, take a look at what David Mittleman, a thoughtful colleague, has written. 
_______________________________________________________

The Texas nurses' disclosures to the Texas Board of Medicine appear to have been

appropriate under HIPAA. See 45 CFR 164.512 (d). The disclosure was proper. 

http://www.lawyersandhipaa.com/512.htm

Information and links re Texas Nurses Anne Mitchell and Vicki Galle

Information http://tinyurl.com/texas-nurses
News: http://tinyurl.com/Texas-Nurses-News

Key Documents attached to Federal Complaint: http://www.casewatch.org/civil/mitchell/suit.pdf 

American Hospital Assn: http://www.aha.org/aha/news-center/contact-us.html

American Medical Assn:  http://www.ama-assn.org/ama/pub/news/for-media.shtml

Joint Commission: http://www.jointcommission.org/NewsRoom/

Texas Medical Board

http://www.tmb.state.tx.us/ 

http://www.fsmb.org/directory_smb.html 

The doctor's history:

http://w3.health.state.ny.us/opmc/factions.nsf/58220a7f9eeaafab85256b180058c032/7a6202983003e311852573800060bc44/$FILE/lc205227.pdf
http://www.google.com/search?q=inurl : http://www.tmb.state.tx.us/++site:tmb.state.tx.us+arafiles&hl=en&safe=off&num=100&filter=0

Feb. 8 

Trial begins, Jury selected, Sheriff testifies 

NPR: http://www.npr.org/templates/story/story.php?storyId=123502251f

New York Times Feb. 7 article by Kevin Sack

http://www.nytimes.com/2010/02/07/us/07nurses.html?pagewanted=all#

http://tinyurl.com/NY-Times-on-Texas-Nurses

http://www.dallasnews.com/sharedcontent/dws/news/texassouthwest/stories/DN-nurse_07tex.ART.State.Edition1.4be85e5.html

http://seattletimes.nwsource.com/html/nationworld/2011003845_nurse07.html

http://www.heraldtribune.com/article/20100207/ARTICLE/2071042/-1/NEWSSITEMAP

Business Insider - Feb. 7 article by Erin Geiger Smith

http://www.businessinsider.com/a-texas-nurse-faces-felony-charges-for-reporting-doctor-to-medical-board-2010-2

http://spotlight.vitals.com/2010/02/tit-for-tat-charges-doctor-rolando-arafiles/

http://northcountrypublicradio.org/blogs/ballotbox/2010/02/why-tort-reform-makes-people-nervous.html

Texas Nurses Assn. Page provides chronology

http://www.texasnurses.org/displaycommon.cfm?an=1&subarticlenbr=509#trialbegins

http://www.texasnurses.org/displaycommon.cfm?an=1&subarticlenbr=509

http://www.texasnurses.org/associations/8080/files/ANA_TNA-PR.pdf

Overview: 

http://www.martindale.com/white-collar-crime-law/article_Holland-Hart-LLP_768718.htm

Articles: 

http://lpn.advanceweb.com/Editorial/Content/PrintFriendly.aspx?CC=206349

http://www.modernhealthcare.com/article/20100203/NEWS/302039961#

http://www.modernhealthcare.com/article/20100203/NEWS/302039961#

http://74.125.95.132/search?q=cache:IjeQkEZu_GsJ:www.modernhealthcare.com/article/20090727/SUB/907249994+A+Texas-size+mess&cd=1&hl=en&ct=clnk&gl=us

http://www.medicalnewstoday.com/articles/157884.php

http://allnurses.com/nursing-news/tx-nurses-facing-408891-page20.html

http://groups.google.com/group/net-gold/browse_thread/thread/115406b351020ba8

http://nursing.advanceweb.com/Editorial/Content/Editorial.aspx?CC=205641

Blogs/forums

http://allnurses.com/nursing-news/tx-nurses-facing-408891-page20.html

http://nursing.advanceweb.com/Editorial/Content/Editorial.aspx?CC=205641

http://net-gold.jiglu.com/discussion/messages/3347840

Nurses File Suit: 

http://www.winklerpost.com/postnews/2009/wp20090827/wp20090827_news6.php

http://www.cbs7kosa.com/news/details.asp?ID=14661 

Texas:

http://www.newswest9.com/Global/searchresults.asp?vendor=ez&qu=galle

http://www.cbs7.com/news/details.asp?ID=14113 
http://www.cbs7.com/news/details.asp?ID=14149
http://www.cbs7kosa.com/news/details.asp?ID=14661
http://www.newswest9.com/Global/story.asp?S=10855544 
http://www.newswest9.com/Global/story.asp?s=10989644 

http://www.newswest9.com/Global/story.asp?s=10835124
http://www.winklerpost.com/postnews/2009/wp20090827/wp20090827_news5.php
http://www.winklerpost.com/postnews/2009/wp20090716/wp20090716_news8.php .
http://www.winklerpost.com/postnews/2009/wp20090723/wp20090723_oped.php

http://www.winklerpost.com/postnews/2009/wp20090827/wp20090827_news6.php

http://www.winklerpost.com/resources/

http://www.winklerpost.com/postforum/index.php?topic=19.0

Kermit, Texas      Winkler County

http://www.kermittexas.us/ 

http://www.co.winkler.tx.us/index.htm Winkler county

http://www.co.winkler.tx.us/districtatty.htm Winkler County District Attorney

http://www.co.winkler.tx.us/utilities/WINKLER%20COUNTY%20TELEPHONE%20LISTINGS.pdf

http://www.co.winkler.tx.us/wcso.htm Winkler County Sheriff's Office

http://www.co.winkler.tx.us/countyatty.htm Winkler County Att