Okanagan nurse suspended for checking medical records

A Vernon nurse has been suspended for six months for accessing medical records he didn't need to look at.

Michael Wood accessed medical records of individuals with whom he had no professional nursing relationship and had no need to access between January and October 2019, according to a June 2, B.C. College of Nurses and Midwives decision.

The nursing regulator's report was typically short on details about whose records he accessed or why.

Wood signed a consent agreement admitting to the infractions that also include him not documenting all client interactions and not working scheduled hours.

The decision also says Wood displayed "disrespectful behaviour towards colleagues" and failed to follow workplace mileage requirements.

Following the six-month suspension, Wood will also not be allowed to be the sole registered nurse on duty for a period of six months afterwards and will be barred from working in a supervisory role and teaching students for one year.

If and when Wood returns to work he will also be under direct supervision for three months.

Wood will also have to take educational courses in ethics, working in a respectful workplace, along with documentation, professional standards, and privacy and confidentiality.

No other details were given in the decision.

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