Privacy practices in collaborative environments: A study of emergency department staff

Privacy research has long focused on the individual. Yet most organizations are highly collaborative where teamwork is the norm. To examine privacy practices in collaborative settings, we conducted an ethnographic study of a highly collaborative and information-intensive setting - an emergency department (ED). We found that ED staff's work practices did not always align with the organization's privacy policies and procedures. We then discuss the use of workarounds when privacy policies interfere with work practices, the challenge of assigning accountability for enforcing privacy in collaborative environments, and implications for technical and policy design. We conclude with some thoughts on the future of privacy research in collaborative settings.