Press Room
For News Media
External Communications is the primary point of contact for news media. The team is available to answer questions, provide patient condition reports and can quickly connect reporters to a source for comment. The team also provides background information, story ideas and arranges all interviews with patients, families and health care professionals at CHI Health.
News media (reporters, film crews and photographers) must make prior arrangements with our External Cummunications team before visiting a CHI Health facility or campus. To protect the privacy of our patients, their families, and our staff, the External Communications must accompany news media at all times while onsite.
The following guidelines must be followed for contacting CHI Health to arrange interviews, video sessions, or photo opportunities:
- Contact External Communications to arrange all interviews or background conversations with any member of CHI Health's staff. Do not contact our staff directly. External Communications is responsible for all inquiries from the media and can provide sources for your story.
- Reporters should identify CHI Health staff by their CHI Health title in stories related to the staff member's work or role at CHI Health.
- Advance notice is necessary so External Communications can secure a room/location for interviews, film crews and/or photographers, notify the patient care areas involved, and schedule the appropriate patients, families and CHI Health staf for the story.
- To protect the privacy of all CHI Health patients and families, External Communications staff must accompany all reporters, film crews, and photographers while onsite at a CHI health facility or campus. No patients may be interviewed, filmed or photographed without prior written consent obtained by the External Communications team.
CHI Health respects its patients' right to privacy. The federal Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act (HIPAA) specifies the purposes for which information may and may not be released without authorization from the patient.
Information about a patient's general condition may be released only if the inquiry specifically identifies the patient by name. No information will be given if a request does not include a specific patient's name or if the patient exercises the right to opt out of being listed in the hospital directory.
As long as the patient has not requested that information be withheld, a condition report may be provided to individuals, including the media, who inquire without obtaining permission from the patient. To request a trauma patient condition report, contact our public relations team.
CHI Health uses the following condition reports:
Undetermined
Patient is awaiting physician assessment or is currently being evaluated by a physician.
Good
Vital signs* are stable and within normal limits. Patient is conscious and comfortable. Indicators are favorable.
Fair
Vital signs are stable and within normal limits. Patient is conscious, but may be uncomfortable. Indicators are favorable.
Serious
Vital signs may be unstable and not within normal limits. Patient is acutely ill. Indicators are questionable.
Critical
Vital signs are unstable and not within normal limits. Patient may be unconscious. Indicators are unfavorable.
Treated and Released
Patient was treated at facility and released.
Treated and Transferred
Patient was treated at facility and transferred to another facility.
Deceased
A patient's death can be released only after the family is notified and after permission is granted.
*vital signs include temperature, pulse rate, blood pressure, and respiratory rate; these signs may be watched, measured, and monitored to check an individual's level of functioning.
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BY POSTING ON ANY CHI HEALTH SOCIAL MEDIA SITE YOU AGREE TO THESE TERMS.
CHI Health has opened publicly facing pages on social media sites for viewing content and/or videos and posting comments about CHI Health, including, but not limited to various blogs, bulletin boards, networks, multi-media and news media sites or other user generated content sites ("CHI Health Social Media Sites"). By accessing, viewing and/or posting any content related directly or indirectly to CHI Health on any CHI Health Social Media Site on the internet, you accept, without limitation or qualification, the following terms of use. If you do not agree to the terms of this Policy, you may not view or post any content to any CHI Health Social Media Site on the internet. Your use of CHI Health Social Media Sites is acceptance of this Policy and has the same effect as if you had actually physically signed an agreement. Please contact us with any questions.
- If you are a CHI Health employee you must adhere to the CHI HEALTH SOCIAL NETWORKING POLICY & GUIDELINES posted on the CHI Health Intranet site.
- You must be at least 18 years old to post any content on any CHI Health Social Media Site.
- You are prohibited from posting any content that is personal health information including patient images on any CHI Health Social Media Site. You are also prohibited from using the CHI Health Social Media Site to provide medical advice or medical commentary by non-CHI Health physicians or to use the CHI Health Social Media Site to make, recommend or increase referrals to physicians who are not employed by CHI Health.
- As a guest posting content to any CHI Health Social Media Site on the internet, you agree that you will not: violate any local, state, federal and international laws and regulations, including but not limited to copyright and intellectual property rights laws regarding any content that you send or receive via this Policy; transmit any material (by uploading, posting, email or otherwise) that is unlawful, disruptive, threatening, profane, abusive, harassing, embarrassing, tortuous, defamatory, obscene, libelous, or is an invasion of another's privacy, is hateful or racially, ethnically or otherwise objectionable as solely determined in CHI Health’s discretion; impersonate any person or entity or falsely state or otherwise misrepresent your affiliation with a person or entity; transmit any material (by uploading, posting, email or otherwise) that you do not have a right to make available under any law or under contractual or fiduciary relationships; transmit any material (by uploading, posting, email or otherwise) that infringes any patent, trademark, trade secret, copyright or other proprietary rights of any party; transmit (by uploading, posting, email or otherwise) any unsolicited or unauthorized advertising (including advertising of non CHI Health services or products), promotional materials, "junk mail," "spam," "chain letters," "pyramid schemes," or any other form of solicitation; transmit any material (by uploading, posting, email or otherwise) that contains software viruses, worms, disabling code, or any other computer code, files or programs designed to interrupt, destroy or limit the functionality of any computer software or hardware or telecommunications equipment; harass another; or collect or store, or attempt to collect or store, personal data about third parties without their knowledge or consent; or to share confidential pricing information of any party.
- CHI Health reserves the right to monitor, prohibit, restrict, block, suspend, terminate, delete, or discontinue your access to any CHI Health Social Media Site, at any time, without notice and for any reason and in its sole discretion. CHI Health may remove, delete, block, filter or restrict by any other means any materials in CHI Health's sole discretion. You understand and agree that CHI Health may disclose your communications and activities with CHI Health in response to lawful requests by governmental authorities, including Patriot Act requests, judicial orders, warrants or subpoenas, or for the protection of CHI Health rights. You agree that in the event that CHI Health exercises any of its rights hereunder for any reason, CHI Health will have no liability to you.
- By posting any content on any CHI Health Social Media Site, you grant to CHI Health the irrevocable right to reproduce, distribute, publish, display such content and the right to create derivative works from your content, edit or modify such content and use such content for any CHI Health purpose.
- You shall defend, indemnify, and hold CHI Health and its related entities and affiliates and their respective officers, directors, employees, contractors, agents, predecessors, successors and assigns harmless from and against, and shall promptly reimburse them for, any and all losses, claims, damages, settlements, costs, and liabilities of any nature whatsoever (including reasonable attorneys' fees) to which any of them may become subject arising out of, based upon, as a result of, or in any way related to or connected with, your posting of any content to a CHI Health Social Media Site, any third party claims of infringement or any breach of this Policy.
- YOU EXPRESSLY ACKNOWLEDGE THAT YOU ASSUME ALL RESPONSIBILITY RELATED TO THE SECURITY, PRIVACY, AND CONFIDENTIALITY RISKS INHERENT IN SENDING ANY CONTENT OVER THE INTERNET. By its very nature, a website AND THE INTERNET cannot be absolutely protected against intentional or malicious intrusion attempts. CHI Health does not control the THIRD PARTY SITES AND THE Internet over which you may choose to send confidential personal or health information OR OTHER CONTENT and, therefore, CHI Health DOES NOT WARRANT ANY SAFEGUARD AGAINST ANY such interceptions or compromises to your information. when posting any content on an internet site, you should think carefully about your own privacy in disclosing detailed or private information about yourself and your family. FURTHERMORE, CHI Health DOES NOT ENDORSE ANY PRODUCT, SERVICE, VIEWS OR CONTENT DISPLAYED ON THE CHI Health SOCIAL MEDIA SITE.
- You agree that any claim or dispute relating to your posting of any content on a CHI Health Social Media Site on the internet shall be construed in accordance with the laws of the State of Nebraska without regard to its conflict of laws provisions and you agree to be bound and shall be subject to the exclusive jurisdiction of the local, state or federal courts located in Douglas County, Nebraska.
- You may not provide any content to a CHI Health Social Media Site that contains any product or service endorsements or any content that may be construed as political lobbying, solicitations or contributions or use the CHI Health Social Media Site to link to any sites or political candidates or parties or use the CHI Health Social Media Site to discuss political campaigns, issues or for taking a position on any legislation or law.
- THIS POLICY MAY BE UPDATED AT ANY TIME WITHOUT NOTICE, AND EACH TIME A USER ACCESSES A SOCIAL NETWORKING SITE, THE NEW POLICY WILL GOVERN USAGE EFFECTIVE UPON POSTING. To remain in compliance, CHI Health suggests that you review the Policy, as well as the other website policies, at regular intervals. By continuing to post any content after such new terms are posted, you accept and agree to any and all such modifications to this Policy.