A Pennsylvania hospital has been cited after state investigators determined a "ton" of employees at UPMC Bedford Memorial crowded into an operating room to take photos and videos of a patient with a genital injury.

"There were so many people it looked like a cheerleader type pyramid," one witness told investigators, according to state records.

The incident took place Dec. 23 after the patient came to the emergency room for a genital injury that required surgery to remove a "foreign body," according to the health department.

An employee reported it to hospital administrators in January, prompting an investigation by the hospital. The health department conducted an investigation that began in late May.



"In January a hospital employee came forward to complain about photographs that were circulating around the hospital, of a patient under anesthesia while in the [operating room]," according to the health department's investigation. "The patient had a genital injury and OR staff had apparently taken photos and video of the patient using their personal cell phones, and were showing the photos to other hospital staff."

The Pennsylvania Department of Health cited the hospital in Everett, Pa. for multiple violations:

Failing to protect a patient's confidentiality and privacy

Allowing people not involved in the patient's care into the operating room

Allowing them to use personal devices to take pictures of the patient

The hospital has suspended one doctor for seven days, another for 28 days, and is replacing the surgical services nursing director, according to the health department.

An emailed response from UPMC said:

"UPMC is committed to ensuring that our patients' health information remains confidential. The behavior reported in this case is abhorrent and violates the mission of UPMC Bedford and the overall values of UPMC. Upon discovery, UPMC quickly self-reported the incident to the Pennsylvania Department of Health and took appropriate disciplinary action with the individuals involved. The Department of Health has approved our plan of correction. We have also alerted the affected patient. Since this is an ongoing investigation, we are not at liberty to comment further at this time."

The violation was first reported on the blog of Walter F. Roche Jr.



An employee said a doctor requested a photo be taken with an operating room camera "to use for future medical lectures," according to the health department. The employee said the camera was broken, resulting in use of "personal phones." However, the health department wrote in its report, "Initially, we thought there was only one picture taken, but later we learned of others. We also had the camera checked out, it is working, it is just too complicated to use."





A different employee told investigators, "I was attending to the patient and at one point when I looked up there were so many people it looked like a cheerleader type pyramid."

Another employee recounted "it was a couple days before Christmas, I received a picture text on my phone from Anesthesia, made a comment and moved on. We do pass on interesting stuff..."

Another told the health department "the patient was the focal point of all the chaos and that there was a 'ton' of people in the room."

Still another admitted showing the picture to a spouse, according to the health department.

The health department has required the hospital to carry out a lengthy plan of correction. Its report makes no mention of financial penalties.

The hospital has taken corrective steps:

Sending a memo to staff members regarding adhering to hospital policies

Requiring surgical staff had to attend a meeting on privacy and confidentiality

Disciplining an unspecified number of staff members, with records placed in their files.

Appointing a new surgical services nursing director.



Also, a hospital medical executive committee conducted an investigation resulting in actions against two physicians. One, an attending physician, was given a "letter of guidance" with the physician's hospital privileges suspended for seven days. The doctor was further required to complete six hours of training regarding patient privacy and medical ethics.



Another doctor, who wasn't involved in the patient's care but was in the operating room, was suspended for 28 days and required to complete 18 credits related to privacy and ethics.



Names of the disciplined doctors and employees aren't included in the health department report