The hospital made the decision to fire the nurse after an internal investigation.
The post centered on the nurse’s experience of treating a 1- to 3-year-old boy who tested positive for measles at the hospital.
The pediatric intensive care unit nurse posted about the child on the anti-vaccination group Proud Parents of Unvaccinated Children-Texas, according to screenshots obtained by The Houston Chronicle. The page has been taken down.
“I think it’s easy for us nonvaxxers to make assumptions, but most of us have never and will never see one of these diseases,” the Texas Children’s nurse wrote, according to The Chronicle. “By no means have I changed my vax stance, and I never will. But I just wanted to share my experience and how much worse it was than I expected.”
Parents shared the screenshots of the nurse’s post on the Texas Children’s Facebook page, and the hospital immediately said it would investigate.
“We were made aware that one of our nurses posted protected health information regarding a patient on social media. We take these matters very seriously, as the privacy and well-being of our patients is always a top priority,” a hospital spokesperson told Becker’s. “After an internal investigation, this individual is no longer with the organization.”
The nurse did not see patients after the post was shared with the hospital.
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