I was videotaping my husband in the waiting room of a doctors office, he was there because he was going to an independent medical examination (IME) for an on the job injury. On the IME notice it specified we were allow to videotape his medical examination and we were to get him on videotape to prove he was in the office and did get examined by a doctor. During the videotaping I accidentally videotaped patients sitting and moving about the waiting area, they were not discussing or revealing any personal or medical information. The camera was on no more than 5 minutes and I also videotaped him at the desk talking to a medical professional and also my husband filling out paperwork for the doctor and then I turned it off while we were waiting for the doctor. After about a 1/2 hour of waiting, (camera off) we were next (or thought) to see the doctor and the office manager gets up from behind the desk and asked us to leave the office in a rude nasty tone because we violated the patients in the waiting areas Hipaa rights by videotaping. I never heard a Hipaa violation by videotaping, is this true?

Its not a HIPAA violation, but it is a violation of the patient's rights. The doctor's office is not a public place and people have a right to not have their pictures taken in a private place.

In a sense it does violate HIPAA as photographs and/or videotape of patients and/or their families is not allowed without written permission.


courts have also imposed liability when the patient's name or likeness was used for non-commercial purposes, finding that even taking a picture without the patient's expressed consent was an invasion of privacy


The Joint Commission further advises that a confidentiality commitment be signed by anyone conducting filming or videotaping. This would be especially important to recognize when outsiders are involved because many organizations already require employees to sign annual confidentiality statements that should include patient photography within the commitment.

Patient Photography, Videotaping, and Other Imaging (Updated) (http://library.ahima.org/xpedio/groups/public/documents/ahima/bok2_000585.hcsp?dDocName=bok2_000585)

At my facility, patients must sign a consent for photographs and/or videos to be taken by friends and/or families.

Its not a HIPAA violation, but it is a violation of the patient's rights. the doctor's office is not a public place and people have a right to not have their pictures taken in a private place.

Thank you it did help!

In a sense it does violate HIPAA as photographs and/or videotape of patients and/or their families is not allowed without written permission.





Patient Photography, Videotaping, and Other Imaging (Updated) (http://library.ahima.org/xpedio/groups/public/documents/ahima/bok2_000585.hcsp?dDocName=bok2_000585)

At my facility, patients must sign a consent for photographs and/or videos to be taken by friends and/or families.

Thank you very much