A former employee of ProMedica Bay Park Hospital in Oregon, Ohio, was found guilty of a misdemeanor count of accessing nearly 600 patient records without a legitimate purpose, reports The Toledo Blade.
Jamie Knapp was a respiratory therapist at the hospital. Prosecutors alleged Ms. Knapp illegally accessed EHRs between May 2013 and March 2014. She faces a maximum sentence of one year in prison for violating HIPAA, according to the report.
Prosecutors alleged Ms. Knapp accessed the records to see which patients were prescribed pain medications and to take the pills for herself. Ms. Knapp's defense attorney said she looked at the records to improve herself professionally, according to the report.
In a statement to Becker's Hospital Review, ProMedica said, "ProMedica deeply values patient privacy and will take disciplinary action against individuals who violate patient privacy guidelines."
Editor's note: This article was updated to include a comment from ProMedica.
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