The province’s privacy commissioner has determined that a privacy breach occurred when a clerk at an Eastern Health blood collection clinic loudly asked a question regarding the complainant’s HIV positive status.

The incident, which occurred in 2020, involved the clerk loudly asking a co-worker for assistance with a registration code which included the letters “HIV.” The complainant was upset, fearing that the question, which was repeated four times, was loud enough to be heard by other staff and patients in and around the registration desk.

Eastern Health conducted its own investigation into the complaint and determined that a breach had not occurred due to a lack of objective evidence that the clerk had been overheard.

Michael Harvey, however, determined that a material breach had occurred and is recommending that a breach report be filed and that signage be posted by Eastern Health to remind staff to be discrete when discussing personal health information.