I take it all back. On the news this evening I see they have both owned that it was a bad idea and apologized. That’s better.
I think anyone listening to the thing will realise that the nurse was really, really nervous, thinking she was talking to the actual Queen. A mild reprimand of some sort, maybe, is warranted. Also, I highly doubt the Royals would want anything to happen to her - it’s a PR disaster if anything does for a start - plus they are kind of used to privacy invasions, and this was a minor one.
San Vito:
You’ve never heard of Carole King?
At the hospital I worked at, releasing any health information to an unauthorized person is grounds for immediate firing with no warning or reprimand, whether or not the patient is a celebrity. We wouldn’t even acknowledge that a person had been admitted as a patient without specific authorization from the patient, except for some very unusual circumstances (like someone without ID who comes in unconscious, and then the practice was to contact the police about identification of the situation persisted). If the nurse was working in the US, she’d already be looking for another job. HIPAA (the US health information privacy rules) is pretty strict.
Tell that to King Carol of Romania!
You got anything else? Besides lacking the integrity to apologise to me for the ‘juvenile asshole’ insult? The second verse goes, ‘I didn’t bother to get all the facts!’
Oh I’ll apologize, most sincerely. However I was not actually calling you a juvenile asshole. Only that your defense was what one always hears coming from the lips of such juvenile assholes as we have all met in life, I’m sure. I’m sorry if it was not clear enough for you. This prank however would qualify on both counts to me.
That may be true in normal cases, but is it the same when it involves royalty? No doubt the law says it’s the same, but how about in practice? If something like this happened in Thailand, the receptionist would be lucky to escape execution! Her entire family would probably be shunned as outcasts forever more and their property confiscated, whereas if someone wheedled some info about me, I’d just be told, “Shut up and stop complaining, you stupid farang!”
I’m sure you realize that this doesn’t happen with British royalty. They’re constantly harassed by paparazzi and employees are endlessly tattling on their private lives. Have you ever heard of someone suffering serious consequences or their families getting shunned?
Oh yes, I know. Thais are usually astounded when they see how the British royalty are treated. But I was wondering if the family might have the clout behind the scenes to have the poor girl at the reception desk dismissed quietly.
To consider that an apology elbows, I’d be happy to contemplate it from the warm, and deep perspective you’re coming from, but my head doesn’t disappear up my arse like yours does.
It’s not how our royal family behaves. PR is very important to them, having a disgruntled ex-nurse running to the tabloids isn’t exactly what they would wish for.
Royalty aren’t above the law. In theory and in practice.
Calm down dear…
The rest of the world has yet to catch up with the subtle sophisticated humour of you botoxed (cite - Shane Warne), crybaby (cite- Kim Hughes) old lags.
Okay, both of you take it to the Pit if you must, but out of this thread now.
Um, maybe we were wrong about the receptionist - she’s dead! :eek:
:eek::eek::eek:
I came in to post the same thing. Poor woman. She was a nurse helping out on the switchboard that morning when the prank call came in.
This article doesn’t say if had been fired. I got a feeling the hospital must have been pretty harsh. You can be sued or even prosecuted under HIPAA laws in the U.S. for disclosing patient information.
Damn. Beaten to the punch. I just arrived home, and there’s Breaking News on BBC that the nurse involved in the call is dead.
Could the Star Chamber have been activated? I hope the Aussie DJs are in hiding.
EDIT: Just saw the post above mine that indicates a suicide. 
BBC just aired a live statement from the hospital CEO. He expressed much shock and sorrow and claimed (he said) that the hospital had been supportive of the nurse. No mention of lawsuits or dismissals.
A family devastated, all for a practical joke.
That poor woman. Who no doubt took, her own professionalism and caring for Kate very seriously. And protecting her from people who would invade her privacy, as she worked in the royal favoured hospital. Likely had a security clearance she might lose, not to mention the infamy of having fallen for a hoax.
I kind of feel sorry for the stupid DJ’s now too, they will have this ‘prank’ with them all their lives. That’s got to be pretty awful too.