San Francisco Chronicle - Friday, June 9, 1989
Elaine Herscher, Chronicle Staff Writer

The agreement essentially gives the nurse key confidentiality protections she had been requesting since she accidentally stuck herself with an AIDS-infected needle in July 1987. Judge Alfred Williams of the San Francisco Workers Compensation Appeals Board approved that agreement Wednesday, ending a battle of nearly two years.

The nurse, known in city records as Jane Doe, and the city's workers compensation division had been in dispute over how the city would investigate her claim yet not disclose her name to claims investigators, secretaries and others who normally handle such cases. IDENTITY PROTECTED

Under the agreement, only two people - Deputy City Attorney Dan Maguire and claims manager Brian Narlock - will have access to her real name. City Attorney Louise Renne and Clare Murphy, general manager of the city's employees retirement system, may know her identity only if it becomes crucial in determining whether she has been properly paid.

Once her claim is processed, she could receive compensation for past bills in four weeks and get lifetime coverage after that.

The nurse said she is pleased that the ordeal is over but angry that it took so long.

"It is kind of a sobering joy, like when a war ends and you count the casualties," she said, adding that for the city, "it was about numbers and money and politics and egos and turf. It wasn't about a human being. If it had been one of their siblings or lovers or daughters, things would have moved differently." DISCRIMINATION FEARED

The nurse has said that her HIV status is protected by law, and she fears public disclosure would lead to discrimination by employers and insurance companies. Although she does not have AIDS, she has contracted the virus that causes the disease and has incurred $5,000 in medical bills.

The city had argued that it was negotiating in good faith but had never handled such a complicated case. Although the city insists this is an isolated case that does not set precedent, attorney Maguire, who negotiated for the city, said San Francisco was under pressure to set standards for other employees. "Jane Doe may not have been the biggest issue; other people were involved," Maguire said. "The main thing that turned it around was that the city attorney and the mayor's office just decided we should just get this case behind us rather than (have) it be an issue for other people."

The workers compensation division came under further pressure to settle the matter last week, after a group of about 35 health care workers and other supporters held a demonstration at Maguire's office.

Also last week, the city was notified that in Santa Clara, which has no known case of a health worker contracting acquired immune deficiency syndrome on the job, there is already a policy for dealing with worker confidentiality.

Local 790 of the Service Employees International Union, which represents San Francisco General nurses, is engaged in negotiations with the city for a similar policy.

Always watch for outdated information. This article first appeared in 1989. This material is designed to support, not replace, the relationship that exists between you and your doctor.

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