A clinic in California embroiled itself in controversy after an alleged employee posted an inappropriate video showing off private patient information.
In the clip, gynecologists took photos of patients’ body fluids left on exam chairs after they left the appointment.
In a video with over 12.5 million views, Ruby Monroe News (@rubywiththenews) explained her take on a recent video posted by an employee at one Sutter Health location, a health group with over 220+ locations across California. She’s one of many content creators responding to the viral clip by @angieuncut.
In the video, multiple staff members pose next to patients’ bodily fluids staining the paper sheets lining the exam chairs.. There are six images overall in the slideshow, each showing a different exam chair with varying levels of body fluids.
The video’s on-screen text read, “Are patients allowed to leave you guys gifts?”
It clearly refers to the fluids as “a gift” from the patient to the care provider. In the description, @angieuncut wrote, “Guess the substance!”
In Ruby’s video, she asks, “Which one of y’all thought that this was a good idea? To film, post, all of that… All of y’all got in on this.” Ruby described the clinic staff’s behavior as “weird” and “insane.”
A social media firestorm
Over the course of the weekend, thousands of people liked, commented, and shared the original video from @angieuncut. A post on r/santabarbara racked up thousands of clicks, pointing out how inappropriate the original content was.
In the description of that video, u/Fragrant-Basil-10 stated, “Just want to make you all aware of this post going around right now on TikTok. [These] health ‘professionals’ at Sutter Health Pesetas Urgent Care [are] making fun of patients by taking pics with what they ‘left behind.’ Seems like a pretty unprofessional place.” They named the specific location: Sansum Clinic at Pesetas Urgent Care.
Other Redditors added their thoughts, generating hundreds of comments within hours.
One stated that they would report the situation to Sutter’s executives. “I know most of the local Healthcare executives personally having been in Healthcare management locally for 25 years,” they wrote. “This team is going to rue the day they posted this dehumanizing garbage.”
Edhat.com quickly jumped on the story, followed by the Santa Barbara Independent. Within a matter of hours, Santa Barbara residents all became extremely acquainted with the clinic.
Did the clinic respond?
In a public statement made on September 2, 2025, Sutter Health addressed the controversy.
The full statement reads, “We share the concern raised by a recent social media post at one of our care sites and immediately took action once we became aware. We take this matter very seriously and are conducting a full review. Patient trust and dignity are always our top priority and any behavior that violates those standards is unacceptable. The individual who posted the content is a former employee and was not employed with us at the time of the post. Any staff shown are part of our internal investigation and are on administrative leave pending the results.”
Some Tiktokers posted the statement, leading to a wave of responses. “So you mean [Sutter Health] violated [HIPAA] by having an ex-employee in the back?” One commenter replied, “Okay. I smell [a] lawsuit.”
So, does the original video violate HIPAA?
HIPAA is the Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act. It is a Federal law that restricts access to individuals’ private medical information outside of a medical context.
A medical examiner discussing a patient’s medical information outside of a medical or approved context is a HIPAA violation. HIPAA covers a patient’s personal health information (PHI). Considering patients created their body fluids in a medical context, many would consider it personal health information protected under HIPAA.
@Angieuncut’s post may inadvertently identify people who went to the clinic recently, thus violating HIPAA. Sutter Health previously posted about its HIPAA compliance, stating, “We are required by law to maintain the privacy and security of your protected health information.” In that case, Sutter Health has to take its investigation seriously, considering the added severity.
@rubymonroenews Who thought this was a good idea? #womenshealth ♬ original sound – Ruby with News
The Mary Sue has reached out to Sutter Health’s media hotline and Ruby via TikTok direct message for more information.
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