I don't mean to be naive, but as a nursing instructor I just assumed it was just nurses that needed to know about FERPA. However, just like HIPAA on the medical side of things, everyone who is an employee at a medical facility need to know and understand the HIPAA guidelines, not just nurses and doctors.

No wonder, when we have mock surveys and audits that the college's admissions offices are thoroughly looked at for violations! I guess as a nurse I never realized that employees who do not necessarily have direct client care (or student), everyone is responsible to… >>>

So far, understanding FERPA has made me a little more aware of specific situations where it would be important to seek the assistance of a manager or HR personnel to assure that I don't unintentionally violate a student's right of privacy.

As a nursing instructor, I look at FERPA the same way as HIPAA, both requiring me to use due diligence to protect our students and client's privacy from those who could take advantage of such private information. As educators, it is very important that we are more mindful when we discuss a student's situation that requires us to maintain privacy and not in the present of other students. It would be the same if we as nurses discuss a client's status at the nurses' station where there is always the possibility that someone else could overhear the conversation.