EP 48: Ascension Hospital / Liability in the Event of a Cyber Attack

This episode discusses alleged allegations that may not be confirmed at this time.

In this episode, Nurse Jessica and Nurse Erica are joined by legal nurse consultant Matthew Garvey to discuss the recent cyber attack on Ascension Healthcare. The goal of this episode is to provide information and education for the frontline staff affected. They discuss the lack of preparedness by Ascension for such attacks and the potential liability that nurses may face. Board of Nursing liability still applies during a crisis, and nurses are accountable to the board's standards of practice. Suggested documentation should include a statement about practicing during the ransomware attack. Nurses should continue to enter incidents into the reporting system, despite any alleged discouragement. Lack of preparedness, such as not having sufficient downtime forms, binders or racks for paper documentation, is unacceptable and should be addressed by nurse leaders. There is a focus on the challenges of paper charting during a cyber attack and the lack of support from leadership. They also highlight the issue of managers not supporting staff during a crisis and the potential violation of their responsibilities. The incident command center is mentioned as a crucial resource that should be activated to provide support and guidance during emergencies. It emphasizes the need for clear and consistent messaging to build trust among healthcare workers. The discussion also touches on the ethical and legal considerations of informing patients about delays due to downtime. The lack of a bed board patient tracking system and the use of paper MARs are identified as major challenges during the cyber attack. The conversation concludes with advice to the frontline healthcare workers.

 

Matthew P. Garvey DNP, MBA, RN, EMT-B, CCRN, CEN, TCRN:

https://www.garveyces.com/

 

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Chapters

00:00 Introduction and Guest Introduction

03:50 Cocktail of the Week

05:05 Background on Ascension Hospital Cyber Attack

09:25 Lack of Preparedness by Ascension and Other Healthcare Organizations

16:41 Epic Electronic Medical Record Part in a Cyber Attack

19:50 Civil Liability vs. Board Action

26:25 Responsibilities to the Board of Nursing

27:44 Malpractice Liability Insurance

28:54 Med Errors/Pyxis Down

33:22 What to Document

35:59 Criminal Prosecution for Unintentional Errors

38:46 Incident Reporting

41:11 Erica's Dictionary Word of the Week

42:01 Paper Charting and Unit Preparedness

51:50 Provider Orders Without Order Sets

53:55 The Impact of Managers Going on Vacation During Crisis

1:02:15 The Importance of Incident Command Centers

1:07:35 EMTALA: Ethical and Legal Considerations During Cyberattack

1:12:38 Patient Tracking Systems During Cyberattack

1:15:54 Reporting Sentinel Events and Holding Leaders Accountable

1:22:24 Enema Award of the Week

 

Cocktail of the Week:
Vodka Cranberry

Cranberry juice 2/3

up to 1/3 Vodka (to taste)

Pour over ice and enjoy! 

 

Enema of Week Award:

"Fuck You" song by:  ronfeingold.com 

 

Dictionary word of the week:  Nefarious

Definition: Flagrantly wicked or villainous.

 

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