The Regional Labor Court of the 2nd Region (TRT-SP) upheld the dismissal for just cause of a nurse who accessed, without authorization, the medical records of her grandmother who was hospitalized at the facility where she worked. The decision overturned the lower court ruling that had considered the punishment disproportionate and converted the termination into a dismissal without just cause.
The case involved a nursing professional who, between March 27 and 30, 2023, used her login credentials to access the medical records of her grandmother, a patient who was not under her direct care. The employer argued that the conduct constituted an act of dishonesty and insubordination, resulting in the termination of the employment contract on April 10, 2023.
The lower court judge had found that, given the close family relationship and considering that the employee worked as a relief nurse across various departments, including the medical ward where her grandmother was hospitalized, the conduct did not justify dismissal for just cause. The judge argued that there was no evidence of information disclosure or harm to the patient's care.
The TRT-SP, however, overturned the decision, emphasizing that medical records are confidential documents and that accessing them without the patient's express authorization violates fundamental rights to intimacy and privacy. The court stressed that LGPD (Brazil's General Data Protection Law) expanded the responsibilities of healthcare institutions regarding the processing of sensitive data, extending the responsibility for protecting such information to all hospital professionals, not only to those with an ethical duty of confidentiality.
This post was summarized from the original court decision using AI, with human review.
TRT2/RO No. 1001050-78.2023.5.02.0318