Hospital Nurse Who Took Kate Hoax Call Found Dead

[milanessa]

Other than a news story this morning on the show being canceled and a brief clip of the DJ's tearful interview it's gone from US news. You're probably seeing a lot more of it over there.

[aliceanne]

If I had to guess I would say that nurse 1 put the call through thinking nurse 2 would know how to vett it. Nurse 2 probably assumed that nurse 1 had verified the caller. It doesn't sound like the information nurse 2 gave out greatly upset the royals or the hospital. It only became a big deal when the DJ's publicized it. Did they give out the nurse's name, or did the press put it out there?

The first I heard of this story was when they found her dead. Was it a big story in Britain? The DJs were in Australia.

[floskate]

That is what the station is saying -- that they called so see if the hospital had any objection -- but perhaps they were instead asking for permission? In that case, if the hospital did not call them back, it could be taken as a "No". But only the hospital and the radio station know what the exact nature of the calls were and how much information (if any) was exchanged during those calls.

It was just reported on UK news that the hospital have claimed that neither their management nor the company responsible for media enquiries has spoken to the radio station regarding this matter. So clearly different sides to the story there. However as I understand it, the Australian law requires permission to be granted before broadcasting a hoax call. It wasn't given, no matter how many times they tried to ring so I don't really see the point of them trying to raise this as some kind of defence.

[Vash01]

I don't agree with the death threats at all.. However I think they are getting a little bit of a taste of their own medicine too. What they do to others with their silly pranks. However of course the death threats are wrong and I think its wrong just they are getting blamed.

However when you play with fire and certainly going after a highly famous person like Kate and intrude into others privacy its what you get.

I do think them AND their radio station deserve to be made an example of in terms of that radio station losing its license. And if they broke laws-yes it needs to end too. I'm sorry its my job crap. Nobody has a right to humilate other people for entertainment. Or use somebody like that without their permission. Those nurses did not agree to go on the radio show.



........... These folks they were purposely trying to deceive.

ITA. First of all, it was invasion of privacy, using a lie. An innocent person became a victim, even though they did not intend it to end that way. For that alone they should lose their license- JMO, but it depends on the law in their country. The DJs deserve all the criticism they are getting, and IMO they deserve to be fired. The radio station that allowed pranks has to bear some responsibility too. The death threats are wrong, however. I don't see how the nurses were at fault. The DJs claimed that their accents were so bad that they were surprised the call was put through. They can't blame the nurses for not understanding the difference between good vs bad imitations of different accents.

[orbitz]

You never know how someone, especially a total stranger, is going to react to any situation, but you can't go through life walking on eggshells around everybody. Look at the April Fools' threads that pop up at FSU every April? Don't you think it's possible that someone could've passed out - or worse - after opening one of those threads? It's possible; Anything can happen. Before the death of the nurse, I think most people thought the radio prank was harmless, even amusing, but now they're saying it's wrong, mean-spirited, etc. If the prank was 'wrong' then it should've been called out as wrong before the nurse's death and not only after.

[Vash01]

You never know how someone, especially a total stranger, is going to react to any situation, but you can't go through life walking on eggshells around everybody. Look at the April Fools' threads that pop up at FSU every April? Don't you think it's possible that someone could've passed out - or worse - after opening one of those threads? It's possible; Anything can happen. Before the death of the nurse, I think most people thought the radio prank was harmless, even amusing, but now they're saying it's wrong, mean-spirited, etc. If the prank was 'wrong' then it should've been called out as wrong before the nurse's death and not only after.

From the story I read on CNN, there were more negative comments than positive ones about the prank BEFORE the nurse's death. I will look for the link and post it here.

I don't agree with your comparison with fsu. This board is not a public thing like a radio station, and we don't have very famous people, like the British royalties, here- AFAIK (correct me if I am wrong )

http://www.cnn.com/2012/12/10/world/...html?hpt=hp_t1

From the article:

"Off the air, Greig and Christian tweeted about the practical joke on Thursday and earlier Friday, promising "more on the #royalprank." The pair's Twitter accounts were taken down late Friday.

Some listeners applauded the prank, like one who identified himself as Guido on the station's Facebook page and wrote, "It is only a joke people! it was great i love it!!!"

Others were outraged, with negative comments outnumbering positive ones on 2DayFM's Facebook page even before the nurse's death.

"Your stunt was done at a time in this country where there is paranoia about the intrusion of the media into people's lives," Gary Slenders wrote. "I know you will say it is harmless fun, the management of 2DayFM will say that it won't happen again, but this is exactly where the phone hacking scandal started"

[milanessa]

. Look at the April Fools' threads that pop up at FSU every April? Don't you think it's possible that someone could've passed out - or worse - after opening one of those threads?

Uh, no.

[*Jen*]

The first I heard of this story was when they found her dead. Was it a big story in Britain? The DJs were in Australia.

I think it's bigger in Australia, to be honest.

[MacMadame]

So you think it's excusable to attempt to harass a seriously ill person (no matter who it is) and call it funny? Not just call it funny but make a big production about to to make sure that there is an audience to follow your attempt. Cold world you live in.

What I think is that you are like a dog with a bone and you won't give up until everyone either agrees with you or shuts up. But your characterization of what happened is not the same as mine and it won't be mine no matter how many times you repeat yourself.

[cruisin]

Yes they have--as pointed out, but there were more comments than just the one quoted. And I do not accept this kind of action even if there is no death involved, just as I do not accept bullying if no one gets physically hurt. I am asserting my point of view on this because the normal out cry is "no one cares--they never say it's wrong, they just accept it." Well, I do care, and I do say it's wrong. Just because you don't like me saying that doesn't make any difference to my point of view. I see your posts as making excuses for inexcusable behavior. If that is the kind of world you wish to live in, go enjoy it. I am willing to protest to make a difference how people treat each other.

I am curious to know who you believe was bullied. I agree that this hoax was wrong and inexcusable. However, I don't think they ever actually bullied or mocked the nurse who took her own life. They did something awesomely stupid and ignorant. It became cruel, but I don't believe they can be responsible for another person's choices.

I think they should be fired and I think the radio station should be penalized, in some way.

This is such a sad thing

[leesaleesa]

She could have said no, or at the very least tried to verify who they were. The nurse revealed legally protected information, she's responsible for that. I ask you again, do you think she should be fired? And that you think Kate's rights were violated by the DJs "inquiring about her". Kate's rights to medical privacy were violated when the nurse gave out that information, not when the DJs asked for the information.

I don't know the laws regarding PHI in England, but in the U.S., if I were to call your insurance or health care providers to get your information, the person who is in the wrong is the person who gives out the information. The person who obtains the information has legally done nothing wrong, unless they share this information, which is in effect what the DJ's did by broadcasting the stunt. Both parties can be held liable for not protecting the patient's information.

[Vash01]

We don't really have a full picture of what happened. The hospital stated after she was found dead that there were no disciplinary procedures being faced...but how do we know that Jacintha didn't think there would be? How do we know she wasn't torn to shreds verbally, behind the scenes?

Her brother is saying she died of shame, but how much did he know about his sister's mental state to begin with? And if she did 'die of shame', doesn't that imply that she, at least, felt she had done something wrong?

There are still so many facts missing, and the media's excessive involvement in this really doesn't help anyone. The story is feeding itself, rehashing the same things over and over without producing anything new. Kind of like this thread

It's a very, very sad situation, for everyone. Hopefully the station revisits its policy on pranks, and everyone thinks before doing them in future.

In her culture a brother would know how she must have felt, whether she actually told him or not. You are dealing with a different culture where every letter of the alphabet is not shredded and analyzed. I tend to believe the brother for her state of mind, because he knows the culture. I assume her husband knows too but he may be too traumatized to talk about it.

[Angelskates]

In her culture a brother would know how she must have felt, whether she actually told him or not. You are dealing with a different culture where every letter of the alphabet is not shredded and analyzed. I tend to believe the brother for her state of mind, because he knows the culture. I assume her husband knows too but he may be too traumatized to talk about it.

He obviously didn't know she was fragile enough that this would make her kill herself. Hindsight is 20/20, it's easy to blame this as the trigger, it may have been, but I don't believe this one isolated incident is the sole reason she committed suicide. Mentally stable people don't commit suicide. I've both found a friend who committed suicide, and been the last person to speak to another friend before she did the same. It's easy to want to blame, but these people had plenty of options to seek help, and loving families they left behind, but it wasn't enough for them. I honestly believe that there were signs for one of them, and we read them, but she still chose to kill herself and not get help. For the other, I didn't see any signs; no one did. I knew a sensitive person, but I was surprised. But we don't blame anyone - she didn't give us signs, she didn't ask for help. Even in hindsight, I can't see any signs. I believe both were mentally unstable, and I don't believe it's a sudden decision, but a culmination of things. Some people just keep things bottled up. It's much easily to "know" things once someone has died - but how you can state someone "would know how she felt" because he's her brother - do you really think in Indian culture, brothers know all? That's weird. No one ever knows completely how another person feels.

This says what the radio station is doing to stop this from happening again. It sounds like hospital is doing nothing, no counselling for the family, no public declaration that the correct people will be manning the phones, or that nurses and the hospital will learn not to reveal confidential information so easily, and put systems in place to stop this from happening. The radio station, no doubt, has plenty to learn from this situation, but so does the hospital.

[milanessa]

I am curious to know who you believe was bullied. I agree that this hoax was wrong and inexcusable. However, I don't think they ever actually bullied or mocked the nurse who took her own life.

This is such a sad thing

I guess your definition of bullying differs from mine. I agree, it's a very sad thing.

[Angelskates]

I guess your definition of bullying differs from mine. I agree, it's a very sad thing.

What's yours?

[milanessa]

Doing anything that is intended to humiliate or embarrass someone else.

Is this sort of thing common in Australia?

[Angelskates]

Doing anything that is intended to humiliate or embarrass someone else.

Is this sort of thing common in Australia?

Your definition of bullying is what I would define as mean. Doing it over and over would make it bullying.

I guess it depends on what you consider common; I only listen to Australian radio for a couple of weeks a year and never hear them - but that may also be because I don't listen to these kinds of stations, or because it's Christmas. I don't remember hearing them when I lived there, but again, I don't listen to these kinds of stations. I barely listen to commercial radio.

[milanessa]

Do it once to one person or do it 20 times to 20 people-I call it bullying. You disagree and I'm okay with that but this thread is getting very tiresome so I'll drop out.

[Angelskates]

Do it once to one person or do it 20 times to 20 people-I call it bullying. You disagree and I'm okay with that but this thread is getting very tiresome so I'll drop out.

Doing it 20 times to 20 people makes you a bully, but it doesn't make the 20 people victims of bullying. Do it to the same person 20 times and you're a bully and that person is being bullied. It's the habitual behaviour given to or from a person that makes it different. Mean behaviour is sometimes just that, mean.

[duane]

Doing anything that is intended to humiliate or embarrass someone else.

The purpose of a practical joke is to gets laughs over someone's fear, embarrassment or humiliation, so anyone who's ever played one is a bully.