The CNN Mayo Clinic hatchet job illustrates a dilemma faced by health care organizations. Specifically, the position hospitals find themselves in when wrongly accused of patient mistreatment. Those connected with the alleged mistreatment have the ability to say what they want without accountability. But health privacy law prevents hospitals from publicly defending themselves for protecting the health and safety of their patients.

The healthcare dialog double standard

This dialog double standard has played itself out in children’s hospitals where the perpetrators of medical abuse have duped followers and fans into a public sympathy mindset. But the efforts of protecting the best interest of a child are, by law, something that can’t be ground into linkbait. While the headlines may initially position the perpetrator as victim, subsequent criminal sentencing conveniently doesn’t see the light of day.

CNN and the convenient omission of critical details

As reported by MPR, CNN left some important details on the cutting room floor. The Mayo Clinic has published an August 15, 2018 letter to CNN with a line item account of how they handled this difficult situation. If you’ve ever been in the middle of delivering care in a situation like this it’s easy to see how it played out. Otherwise you’re left only with the winds of public outrage.

Like my mother told me, be careful who you listen to.

CNN would be smart to remove this story, apologize to The Mayo Clinic, and stick with stories that can’t be corroborated.

If you dig this post you might be interested in the 33 charts Hospital Foci. If you hover over the ‘Foci’ menu up there to the top right you’ll see the major categories of the site. Click on hospitals and you’ll find everything in the domain of hospitals and health systems. Feel free to poke around. 

This post was updated with a link to the Mayo Clinic’s letter August 16th at 4:30 PM.