A group of Californian healthcare professionals is learning the hard way about why you sometimes need to keep your social media presence squeaky clean. While this wasn't a case of employers unearthing problematic tweets from years ago, or them sharing controversial points of view online, several urgent healthcare staff have been fired over what they presumably thought would be a comical TikTok.
We recently covered the Los Angeles Airport worker who was fired from her job at a MAC makeup counter when she filmed a day-in-the-life video, but when it comes to the staff of the Sansum Clinic, they've been lambasted over a 'dehumanizing' post where they appeared to mock patients.
In a video joking about whether patients were allowed to leave them 'gifts', the staff then posed around a stained pap smear exam table. The final still image said, "Remember to leave your healthcare workers sweet gifts like these." The video was orignally posted by an account called @angieuncut, and while it's since been taken down, it's been widely circulated elsewhere.
Although those involved likely didn't realize the ramifications of their 'funny' TikTok, there was an immediate backlash.
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Nonprofit healthcare network Sutter Health shared its concerns with KTLA, stating: "We are deeply concerned about a disrespectful social media post made on a personal account by a former employee, and we are conducting a full review in line with our policies."
Similarly, Sansum has spoken out and confirmed that those involved in the video have been terminated. Saying that it didn't align with the professional conduct of Sutter Health, a spokesperson said: "This unacceptable behavior is an outright violation of our policies, shows a lack of respect for our patients and will not be tolerated. Protecting the trust of those we serve is our highest priority and when trust is violated, we take swift action to address it."
Unfortunately for the clinic, this could just be the start of its problems. A look at the Yelp page for the Sansum Clinic shows it has a 1.2/5 rating, based on 206 reviews.
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There's been a recent influx of negative reviews, with one saying: "Today, I saw these photos of the staff taking pictures of the patient’s bodily fluids. Are these women ok ? They are acting as if they do not go through the same experience!
"Are these women vetted prior to this facility hiring them ????? *I will make sure I never step into this clinic and inform others not to visit this medical facility."
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Another adds: "This one is absolutely appalling, I hope that everyone that decided to take part in this video, that found humor in one of the most vulnerable procedures for women, get what they deserve; losing jobs and licenses."
A third says: "Imagine going to a hospital in your most vulnerable state, only to find a video of nurses mocking you for what happened to you in front of a public audience, for millions to see. Hospitals are supposed to be safe spaces. This is absolutely disgusting, unacceptable behavior that is clearly tolerated amongst a large majority of the staff."
This isn't the first negative press that the Sansum Clinic has received. An old Reddit thread has resurfaced, with someone claiming to be a current patient and former employee alleging that it treats its staff poorly. Others in the replies maintain that they go there because it's the only option around.
While Sansum Clinic is clearly trying to move on, the internet has an unfortunately long memory when it comes to this kind of thing.