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UK Hospital Condemns Australian Radio Station Prank After Duped Employee Found Dead

Dec. 8, 2012 10:36am Christopher Santarelli

LONDON, ENGLAND – DECEMBER 06: The Duchess of Cambridge, Catherine Middleton and Prince William, Duke of Cambridge leave the King Edward VII hospital where she has been treated for hyperemesis gravidarum, extreme morning sickness at King Edward VII Hospital on December 6, 2012 in London, England. (Credit: Getty Images)

(AP) — The British hospital that fell victim to a prank call from two Australian DJs asking questions about the pregnant Duchess of Cambridge condemned the hoax on Saturday, ratcheting up the pressure on their radio station a day after the nurse who took the call was found dead.

Lord Glenarthur, the chairman of King Edward VII’s Hospital, wrote the chairman of the radio station’s owner to urge him not to let such a thing happen again.

The consequence of the prank for “was the humiliation of two dedicated and caring nurses who were simply doing their job tending to their patients,” he wrote.

“The longer term consequence has been reported around the world and is, frankly, tragic beyond words.”

Jacintha Saldanha, 46, was found dead early Friday at nurses’ housing provided by London’s King Edward VII hospital, where Prince William’s wife, the former Kate Middleton, was being treated for acute morning sickness this week.

Police released a grainy photo of Saldanha on Saturday. A native of India, she had lived in Bristol in southwestern England with her family for the past nine years, Scotland Yard confirmed.

Police said her death is being treated as “unexplained,” though they said they didn’t find anything suspicious. A coroner will make a determination on the cause next week.

Police have made no connection between her death and the prank call, but people from London to Sydney have been making the assumption that she died because of stress from the call.

Flowers were left outside the hospital’s nurses’ building. Attached to the red, white and blue flowers, a note read: “Dear Jacintha, our thoughts are with you and your family. From all your fellow nurses, we bless your soul. God bless.”

A man identified as Saldanha’s driving instructor Jeff Sellick, told Sky News he was in “complete shock” at her death, saying “it’s just such a shame, she was such a nice person.”

In a statement, Saldanha’s family said they were “deeply saddened” by the death and asked for privacy.

Saldanha had worked for four years at the hospital. She took the hoax call Tuesday by the two DJs from 2DayFM, and transferred the call to the nurse caring for the duchess.

During the call, a woman using the often-mimicked voice of Britain’s monarch asked about the duchess’ health. She was told by the second nurse who took the call from Saldanha that the duchess, the former Kate Middleton, “hasn’t had any retching with me and she’s been sleeping on and off.”

The recorded conversation sparked international headlines, and the DJs, Mel Greig and Michael Christian, soon apologized for the prank. They have said they will not return to the station until further notice, though the chief executive of the station’s parent company has said he stands behind them.

The Australian Communications and Media Authority, which regulates radio broadcasting, says it has received complaints about the prank and is discussing the matter with the Sydney-based station, though it has not yet begun an investigation.

The station has a history of controversy, including a series of “Heartless Hotline” shows in which disadvantage people were offered a prize that could be taken away from them by listeners.

St. James’s Palace, the office of the duchess and her husband Prince William, expressed sadness at Saldanha’s death, but insisted that it had not complained about the hoax. King Edward VII’s Hospital said it did not reprimand Saldanha, nor had plans to discipline her.

Officials from St. James’s Palace have said the duchess is not yet 12 weeks pregnant. The child would be the first for her and William.

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Comments (38)

LeadNotFollow
Posted on December 9, 2012 at 2:10pm
That radio station needs to realize, that actions have consequences.
We should all be held accountable for our actions.

In some Asian countries, public humiliation is taken very seriously.
It causes a lot of depression and suicides.

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Ghandi was a Republican
Posted on December 9, 2012 at 11:23am
It’s obama’s fault. He built the road to the station that built the prank..

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aaron@home
Posted on December 8, 2012 at 6:27pm
all she did was talk on a phone and that spurs her to kill herself and somehow this has to be the fault of somebody else……what was said in that conversation that was so overwhelmingly horrifying as to garner such a shamefully weak reaction…..”oh dear lord I was duped, I need to kill myself now, the horror!!!!!!”
I wanna hear that conversation before I get my pitchfork just yet….
oh , and yeah before I forget……

fake

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CathyvanDyke
Posted on December 8, 2012 at 5:30pm
Maybe the UK hospital administration should look at the fingers pointing back at their security procedures. Could it have been that Jacintha Saldanha assumed that that the credibility of an inquiry which reached the nursing station of the ward where the Princess was being treated had prior screening. It doesn’t make sense that there is a direct line.

BTW my research reveals that the name “Saldanha” has Muslim roots.

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- pavepaws
  Posted on December 8, 2012 at 6:15pm
  Improper privacy procedures and staff training led to this tragedy. The radio station simply highlighted the lack of consistency on the part of the hospital administration.
  
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Mojoron
Posted on December 8, 2012 at 4:04pm
The truth be known, the hospital probably chastised the nurse and fired her. She became despondent and went home and killed herself. So the hospital has some responsibility in this. I really doubt she killed herself because she inadvertently went against hospital policy.

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- jungle J
  Posted on December 8, 2012 at 4:32pm
  and you know the trooof?
  
  Report this comment
- Quagmir
  Posted on December 9, 2012 at 12:45am
  Doesnt matter, we now know guns dont kill people, words kill people.
  
  Report this comment
mbean
Posted on December 8, 2012 at 2:28pm
What is this the middle ages? Why does this so called Royal family still have power over peoples lives.

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- Melika
  Posted on December 8, 2012 at 5:16pm
  What are you complaining about? We’ve been re-establishing the old European aristocracy right here in America for decades.The Kennedy’s, Kerry’s, Clintons, et. al. wield tremendous power and authority not granted them by the Constitution, and we cheer and applaud when it is paraded pass us. Like Europeans, we are content to live off the scraps they throw us, like little children.
  
  The Royal Family is a part of their culture. If that is what they want, then so be it. The Family didn’t do anything to that nurse, it was the rabble that was making such a big deal of thing. If she killed herself because of this, it was probably part of her culture (involving honor) and the glee with which the average citizen wallows in such scandals.
  
  Report this comment
Ducky657
Posted on December 8, 2012 at 1:37pm
I don’t know what happened but my last comment never showed up–must have been too insensitive. A human being is dead because someone thought it would be funny to prank the royal family–Hilarious! I don’t do pranks and have never taken part in a prank for one reason–I have never seen a prank make anyone’s life better. Think about it–can you name a single prank that improved anyone’s life? No–of course you can’t!

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- Wolf73b
  Posted on December 8, 2012 at 3:04pm
  This is a particular characteristic of geration X, Ducky. They seem to think that it is hilarious to make others look stupid. Look at the most popular television programs. Stewart, Colbert, Degeneres…they all seem to make their living by depicting others as being stupid. Prank calls are exactly the same.
  
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Hoax And Chains
Posted on December 8, 2012 at 1:23pm
Sooooo… We have a couple radio DJs who made a prank call. The staff at the hospital then idiotically transferred their call, without proof of who was calling, and doled out private information. The nurse was responsible for her choice. Now, the nurse kills herself, possibly, and morons are calling for murder charges? Again, the woman is responsible for her individual choice to suicide. That’s like charging Marlboro for murder, because people choose to smoke their brand. First, if the woman took the call and transferred the DJs, believing they were who they said they were, she wasn’t firing on all cylinders anyway. If she did unfortunately commit suicide, there was a lot more wrong than just being on the receiving end of a prank call. Now people are calling for the DJs to be charged with murder… awesome logic on the part of bleeding heart morons.

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bikerdogred1
Posted on December 8, 2012 at 1:08pm
Pretty funny nurse is dead over a joke,now when does it stop after the jury finds these two guilty of murder.

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- aproudinfidel
  Posted on December 8, 2012 at 1:27pm
  Glad you think it is funny that someone is dead. I don’t. I also don’t get humor that requires an innocent dupe to be the **** of the joke. When I was a kid my friend’s dad wound up a paraplegic after a co-worker thought it would be funny to pull his chair out from under him as he sat down. Humor should funny on it’s own, without a victim.
  
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- Chet Hempstead
  Posted on December 8, 2012 at 5:55pm
  They’re not the ones who hired an emotionally unstable idiot as a nurse, the hospital did that.
  
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Gourdy
Posted on December 8, 2012 at 1:08pm
Pranks can be a subtle or not so subtle form of bullying. Sure, they can be harmless, but I think we’ve all feel embarrassment when we fall for a prank because people are laughing at our expense. Clearly, they have unintended consequences.

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zman173rd
Posted on December 8, 2012 at 1:01pm
I can’t help but wonder why the heck someone who thinks she was talking to the QUEEN MOTHER would take her life because it was a joke? Did she really think anyone cares? Was she that weak in the head that she would commit suicide rather than accept that fact that she’s human and that comes with the territory? Did she lead such a sheltered life before this that she was never made fun of? How many fewer people on this planet would there be if that was motive enough? Now for someone to MURDER his wife then kill himself, Good riddance. This woman wasted her life because she felt embarrased. Which reminds me, Why was there a moment of silence on the field of play for a MURDERER?

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- HelloWorld
  Posted on December 8, 2012 at 1:12pm
  I think you need to understand that her work place ostracized, and perhaps fired her, or she was placed on suspension pending an investigation. You can also be assured that the employees of the Throne did something similar. I would be very surprised if they didn’t. Violations of this kind are not dealt with in a joking manner You have no idea what her families financial situation was and it shows that joking like this can have, and, do have, harmful consequences to the unintended.
  
  Report this comment
- starman70
  Posted on December 8, 2012 at 1:41pm
  I don’t know what the law in Britan is, but here in America, these nurses would have been in violation of the HIPPAA law. One cannot give out patient information over the phone. The only thing they can give out is general condition e.g Fair, Poor,Critical, etc. The consequences here are very strong.
  
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- robbiehawk
  Posted on December 8, 2012 at 4:47pm
  This nurse did not give out any information – she is the one that answered the phone and transferred the call to the nurse who was taking care of Kate – that nurse is the one who gave an update on her condition.
  
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LouisianaPatriot
Posted on December 8, 2012 at 12:47pm
Very tragic situation.

Mrs. Jacintha Saldanha had come from India and was probably very grateful for her job. She probably was a dedicated worker, who was delighted with the opportunity to have the job. Her co-workers probably loved her, and enjoyed interacting with her. She probably shared homemade Indian foods and treats with them, and they were all like family. Her parents were probably overjoyed with pride that their daughter had acquired such a job, and her two daughters probably loved hearing stories that their loving Mother told them about her days at work.

She probably encouraged her daughters to work very hard in school, and not squander their opportunity. Her husband probably loved his wife, and was grateful for her job at the hospital as well.

Something that very few Americans can relate to is the intense feeling of keeping honor for the family and the family name that others in some other countries respect.

Progressivism has taught so many of us, in the Progressive Public Schools and in Film and Television, that now only should we not honor our families, but that our parents are idiots, and that the opinions of pretty much anyone is to be dismissed.

Progressivism has also taught us that it is somehow ok to denigrate this kind of woman and this tragedy.

Having people of Indian decent in my immediate family, I totally get why this kind of humiliation was too much for her to bear. Some pain is just too much. That is why it is called, unbearabl

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- Hoax And Chains
  Posted on December 8, 2012 at 1:27pm
  Most of what you said is pure conjecture. When someone decides to take their own life, it is not because someone else put a gun to their head or jammed the pills down their throat. The individual does it themselves. You cannot add “Hollywood” conjecture and remove personal responsibility.
  
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- LouisianaPatriot
  Posted on December 9, 2012 at 2:34am
  Hi Hoax,
  
  Why would you consider it Hollywood conjecture? Don’t you know anyone like the person I described?
  
  Hollywood teaches us that people like that don’t exist. They take the humanity away from us.
  
  Report this comment
ResistSocialism
Posted on December 8, 2012 at 12:39pm
Yea I have to agree with others. If she didn’t have a phone or job she would still be alive today. Just say no to phones and jobs.

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1HonestInjun
Posted on December 8, 2012 at 12:20pm
1st Commandment. I am the Lord your God, you shall not have other gods beside me. How the
heck to you think those crazy brits treat the royal family but false gods. Can you imagine the
social pressure that poor Indian girl in a foreign country felt from the brits Every paper, television, radio, and news outlet carried this 24/7. Where were the hospital shrinks to help her through it? I’m surmise all of england was only thinking of their poor Kate.

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matt_c
Posted on December 8, 2012 at 12:05pm
They not be to blame per se, but what they did was probably the final straw. While I like to tease and kid around with my friends, I try to be courteous, kind, and respectful to everyone because I don’t want to make anyone’s day worse or be what these guys ended up being. The ones who gave her that last little push over the edge. I’m not saying I walk on eggshells with everyone, but I don’t go out of my way to be harsh, belligerent, or negative.

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DSTSS2010
Posted on December 8, 2012 at 11:52am
SHE killed herself. SHE is responsible.Why has that become such an alien concept? People ARE responsible for their own actions.

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calmglass
Posted on December 8, 2012 at 11:25am
Am I insensitive here by not thinking we should blame these DJs?? I mean, yes, it was a lame prank. It was dumb. BUT, I have a have a hard time blaming the DJs for this woman’s death.

When I first heard the prank, I thought “how lame.. not even very funny”, and as far as I’m concerned, harmless. The hospital (understandably) wasn’t going to take any action against the employees, and even the royal family had laughed it off.

This woman killing herself means SHE had other issues. It’s nobody else’s fault she decided to check out.

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- Jezreel
  Posted on December 8, 2012 at 11:31am
  That is correct. I should have killed myself about a hundred time over all the times that I have been made a fool of in my earlier years. It is all just a learning process that you have to obtain wisdom as you get older. I am sure this woman had mental issues. For her to kill herself and I believe she also had children, was very selfish indeed.
  
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- forthepeople
  Posted on December 8, 2012 at 11:44am
  Amen : I thought & said the same thing .
  There is more to this story ?
  Like what pressure, what was said by the hospital staff and how they treated her …..
  
  Report this comment
COFemale
Posted on December 8, 2012 at 11:13am
It is time we ban radio DJs from making phone calls any business in order to conduct a prank. (sarc). I mean Bob Costas wants to ban guns, even though he never said it directly. He felt the gun was at fault, therefore in this case DJs are at fault. Had they not made the call the nurse would not have killed herself. (more sarc).

This nurse had bigger issues than being duped from this call. No one in their right mind would go off themselves over a call like this, unless bigger issues existed. I am sorry she had a misguided outlook that her life would be better off if she were dead. She now has saddled her children and husband with the burden of living with the fact their mother took her own life because she was a coward to face them. Maybe the husband was planning to leave her. I don’t know. We will never know.

Did she leave a note? Most suicides leave a note. Most homicides don’t.

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- SkiboSR71
  Posted on December 8, 2012 at 11:56am
  I concur!!! Most people have no idea about how selfish it is to take your own life!!! God have mercy on her and comfort their family and friends!!! The DJ’s should have to do some serious community work and send money to the family for blind ignorance in this case. At least something more than an apology…..
  
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ArmedAndReallyPissed
Posted on December 8, 2012 at 10:55am
UK Hospital Condemns Australian Radio Station Prank After Duped Employee Found Dead…………..You mean like when the World Condemned Syria for SLAUGHTERING their own people ? That sure worked, didn’t it. Why does anyone bother to even use that word anymore. It means nothing.

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- forthepeople
  Posted on December 8, 2012 at 12:10pm
  Just like taking ‘ Oath’s ‘ , always wondered why , because once they break them no one ever says a thing , like slick willie taking the oath to defend and obey the laws of this land , turning around and lying to a federal judge . They took away his law license and for breaking his oath nothing ?
  I have two daughters and let me tell you having the president of the United States saying ‘ blow jobs ‘ were not sex and lying under other were the worst examples for these kids to see !
  I can hear it now ” Well the president did it , Dad ” ……………………………….
  
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blanco5
Posted on December 8, 2012 at 10:49am
Wow, so NO personal responsibility is a world-wide thing!

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benrush
Posted on December 8, 2012 at 10:43am
Death by phone. No one should have phones, except for central planners who are above this sort of thing.

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- ExTex
  Posted on December 8, 2012 at 11:01am
  I can’t help but think that, if she didn’t have a phone, she’d be alive today. We must ban all phones immediately! And, there should be serious dialogue regarding the ban of radios as well. I can’t help but think that if there weren’t radios, she’d still be alive today. And, while we’re at it, maybe we should consider banning all jobs. Because, I can’t help but think…
  
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