There have been several potential privacy incidents reported at your facility in the past week. Your job is to investigate these incidents to determine if they are truly privacy violations. If there are violations, decide what should be done. Review each of the privacy incidents described in the following list. Determine which ones are privacy violations. Determine to whom the privacy violation should be reported and the timing required for the notifications. Identify the specific actions appropriate to address each of the following situations.
1. A patient overheard a physician telling another patient's family that the cancer had spread to the surrounding lymph nodes. The physician was talking in a low voice in a corner of the hallway.