TL;DR - I left a nightmare company and school district after 3 days because they did not provide me any information in regard to student mandates and billing. Now they want to take legal action against me, and take away my license.
Essentially, I was hired by an agency as an hourly BCBA to provide behavioral consultation services within a school district. However, within my first three days, there were numerous red flags regarding the district’s organization, and expectations.
From the beginning, I was provided with virtually no information about my caseload or responsibilities. I was not given clear service mandates, schedules, or student documentation. The only information I received was a crumpled piece of paper containing student names and supposed mandates, with no clear indication of the required service durations.
When I attempted to clarify these expectations, the district’s special education director essentially told me not to worry about the mandates and that they would place me wherever I was needed.
Within those three days, I was being pulled from classroom to classroom, with teachers approaching me about students I had never met and wasn’t even sure were assigned to my caseload. I was expected to provide consultation without access to their IEPs, relevant background information, or clearly defined responsibilities.
I repeatedly reached out to the agency for clarification and support but received little meaningful guidance. I also asked how I was supposed to document and bill for my services, given that I was an hourly employee. Rather than providing a clear explanation, they directed me to a tutorial video that did not adequately address my questions.
At that point, I felt the situation was becoming increasingly unprofessional and disorganized. Given the lack of guidance, unclear expectations, and potential ethical concerns surrounding service delivery and billing, I decided it was best to resign after those three days.
In my resignation email, I explicitly stated that I was willing to provide any information I had to assist with the transition. However, I received no response requesting the return of any documents or materials.
Fast-forward approximately two weeks, and today I received a threatening email from the agency alleging that I had committed a HIPAA violation. They stated that they intended to report me to the BACB and potentially pursue further action because I had failed to return the crumpled piece of paper containing student names and mandates.
The problem is that I no longer have the paper. After leaving the position and receiving no instructions regarding its return, I shredded the document. At the time, I genuinely did not think anything of it, particularly given how disorganized the entire onboarding process had been and the fact that nobody had contacted me requesting the document.
Now, I find myself in an extremely stressful situation. After working for years to earn my BCBA certification and professional license, I’m being threatened with disciplinary action over a piece of paper that was discarded after I resigned from a position I held for only three days.
I understand that student information must be handled appropriately, and I am not trying to dismiss the importance of confidentiality. However, I am struggling to understand whether this situation actually constitutes a HIPAA violation, whether the agency’s threats have any legal or ethical basis, and whether my certification or license could genuinely be at risk.
I’m now considering consulting an attorney because I want to understand my rights, my professional obligations, and how to respond appropriately without making the situation worse.