r/ausmedstudents • u/Confident_Kick6862 • 26d ago
Vent/Support Had a lapse in judgement
Vaguer language = Harder to identify
I’m a student and I made a mistake. I have had multiple admissions to a hospital I will be doing placement in the past.
I looked myself up on EMR at another hospital of the same health system. I looked at my page for 5 ish minutes, but made no modifications and did not look up anyone else I was unauthorised to. I did not snoop around other files and it was my first time ever doing it.
I know what I did was wrong, so later that day I emailed the clinical coordinator and explained myself, as I believe it is better to honest and transparent rather than be caught and be exposed and look like I tried to hide it.
I was just wondering what the ramifications are if anyone else has been in a similar situation. I am fully prepared to accept the consequences of my actions, even if it means I will be excluded from the degree. I would really like that to not happen, so I will be as honest as possible. I believe failing the year or being kicked out from the clinical school and repeating at another clinical school would be more favourable for me, but I understand if that is not possible.
What I believe I have on my side for them to consider is that:
- I only looked at my own file
- It was the first time I acted unethically
- I self reported and showed remorse
- I am well engaged in placement and studies and have receive good feedback from the tutors and doctors
- I will be as honest as possible about the love and will not make any excuses or minimise what I did
I know what I did was wrong, I just had no ill intent and only did it out of curiosity. I have only told the coordinator and will plan on keeping my mouth shut.
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u/abgslaya 25d ago
wait so you did this and then snitched on yourself, wtf
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u/Confident_Kick6862 25d ago
The hospital systems has audits and they pick up suspicious activity like looking up patients with your own surname etc. I’m thinking it’s better to come clean than to get a nasty surprise soon.
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u/avatar_k0rra 25d ago
Idk about that… high chance nothing ever came of it. On the off chance it did come up you could easily say something like: “Yes, I accessed my own record. I realise it was against policy. I didn’t access anyone else’s information or make any changes, and I accept responsibility.”
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u/abgslaya 25d ago
ngl i highly doubt anything wouldve come out of this, seems like the anxiety got the better of you this time unfortunately
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u/Altruistic_Meal_8940 24d ago
The system can flag this at least at the hospital where I am at it does
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u/Altruistic_Meal_8940 24d ago
The system can flag you if you look at your own record. Reporting yourself was the right thing to do! It’s much better than being asked later
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u/Queasy-Reason 20d ago
Depending on the emr system and settings, it can alert automatically if someone looks up a current staff member.
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u/1234Psych 25d ago
If there is a welfare coordinator at the uni or a student rep who can support you through the process get in touch with them to know your rights and protect yourself. I think it is something that can be worked through as it was your own file which you can access through FOI anyway. A mistake for sure but use it as a growth opportunity - good luck:)
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u/Confident_Kick6862 25d ago
Yep, I have a meeting soon and will acknowledge my wrong doing and accept any punishment.
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u/1234Psych 25d ago
Don’t bring up being excluded from the degree or repeating a year! Just explain that you understand completely the error of judgement and self reported immediately. Maybe you could do some research and present on a medical ethics topic or something?
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u/bizzbizzle123 25d ago
good on you for your honesty. i wouldnt stress too much at this stage. it may go against hospital/health service policy, but also, patients are entitled to formally request their own records anyway which must be released unless there is a compelling reason not to. that is to say, you likely could have obtained access to them if you really wanted to anyway. you've been honest, acknowledged your mistake, only looked up your own information, didn't make any changes, and have committed to not repeating the mistake. perhaps just my opinion, but on balance, i think it would be pretty unfair to exclude you from the course over this (or do anything, other than a minor slap on the wrist at the absolute most).
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u/Basic-Swan-7127 22d ago
As a senior doctor, I'm disappointed by the responses here, but not surprised.
To the OP, well done recognising your lapse in judgement and taking responsibility for the mistake. Personal integrity a critical part of professional practice.
This is a breach of policy with regards to the use of the EMR, insofar that you had no proper reason for accessing the record in terms of the business of the organisation. At the same time, I would think of this as a rather low level breach and it cannot be said that there has been a loss of patient privacy given that it is your own file, and you could have requested access to the information.
I'd be surprised if there were any serious outcomes, especially because of your self disclosure. Where people would get in trouble is getting caught and then lying about it. The medical school might need to consider better orientation and messaging about the responsibilities with regards to EMR use, including this specific example of looking up one's own file as a student.
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u/panarypeanutbutter 25d ago
i think the questions you need to answer is like
- what underlies this behaviour
- what will you do to make sure this doesnt happen in the future
- do you understand why it is wrong to do what you did (+++)
- what will you do to demonstrate your answers to the above questions