Image source: WFOR-TV video screenshot
© 2024 Blaze Media LLC. All rights reserved.
Nurse fired after posting photos on social media of infant born with birth defect — and allegedly mocking baby
October 04, 2021
A neonatal intensive care nurse who posted photos on social media of an infant born with a birth defect — and allegedly mocked the baby — has been fired, WFOR-TV reported.
What are the details?
Sierra Samuels at first was placed on administrative leave from Jackson Memorial Hospital in Miami after she shared the images of the infant on her social media account, the station said.
The caption of the first image read, "My night was going great then boom!" WFOR said, adding that the caption of the second image read, "Your intestines posed [sic] to be inside not outside baby" and was followed by "#gastroschisis." The station showed only the photo caption text.
WFOR said gastroschisis is a birth defect of the belly in which the baby's intestines are exposed. The station's video report accompanying its initial story indicates that the survivability rate of gastroschisis is 90%.
WFOR's initial story about the incident ran in early September; the station's follow-up about the nurse's firing ran Monday. It isn't clear exactly when the nurse posted the images or when she was fired.
More from the station:
Jackson Health System said all its employees go through privacy policy training on a regular basis. It said any potential privacy breach is taken seriously.
A statement from a Jackson Health System representative read, in part, "Employees who violate these privacy rules, despite being educated, are subject to disciplinary action including suspension or termination. As soon as we learned of this potential breach, we immediately placed this employee under administrative leave pending the outcome of the investigation."
Samuels had been with Jackson since 2016.
Jackson Health added to the station that the parent was notified of the breach.
'Certain expectation of privacy'
A Miami litigation attorney told WFOR in its initial story that patient privacy is expected.
"In addition to ... the general HIPAA violation that we'd be looking at here, there's a sense of decency about the rights and expectations we all have in our likenesses and our images," David Weinstein explained to the station.
Weinstein added to WFOR that "with images, you have a certain expectation of privacy, that if you're in an area ... you believe to be private and in this case a hospital, even more so."
Jackson Hospital Fires Nurse For Posting Disturbing Photos, Captions Of NICU Baby On Social Media
Want to leave a tip?
We answer to you. Help keep our content free of advertisers and big tech censorship by leaving a tip today.
Want to join the conversation?
Already a subscriber?
Sr. Editor, News
Dave Urbanski is a senior editor for Blaze News.
DaveVUrbanski
Dave Urbanski
Sr. Editor, News
Dave Urbanski is a senior editor for Blaze News and has been writing for Blaze News since 2013. He has also been a newspaper reporter, a magazine editor, and a book editor. He resides in New Jersey. You can reach him at durbanski@blazemedia.com.
@DaveVUrbanski →more stories
Sign up for the Blaze newsletter
By signing up, you agree to our Privacy Policy and Terms of Use, and agree to receive content that may sometimes include advertisements. You may opt out at any time.
© 2024 Blaze Media LLC. All rights reserved.
Get the stories that matter most delivered directly to your inbox.
By signing up, you agree to our Privacy Policy and Terms of Use, and agree to receive content that may sometimes include advertisements. You may opt out at any time.