A group of urgent care employees in Santa Barbara, California, are out of work after a TikTok video mocking patients blew up into a scandal across social media platforms. The outrage stemmed from the main focus of the video, which has since been deleted, which was the bodily fluids that patients left behind on the exam table at Sansum Clinic.
The clip featured still images of several health workers posing near the exam tables, captioned with phrases like “Guess the substance” and “Are patients allowed to leave you guys gifts?” In one image, a smiling employee gave a thumbs-up over a stain, while another leaned dramatically toward a larger mark, sticking out her tongue. A final shot showed several staffers clustered around an exam table, joking that patients should “leave sweet gifts” for their carers.
The video quickly circulated beyond TikTok, landing on Reddit’s r/Santabarbara page, where it drew over 1,000 comments. Many expressed outrage at what they saw as deeply unprofessional behaviour, with one self-identified nurse calling the video “unethical” and leaving her “speechless”. Another user vowed to report the incident directly to the executives of Sutter Health, which partners with Sansum Clinic.
Sutter Health, one of Northern California’s largest nonprofit healthcare networks, condemned the video in a statement. According to Sutter Health, the person who posted the video was not working at the facility when the post was made, and everyone involved in the video has since been terminated.
“We are deeply concerned about a disrespectful social media post made on a personal account by a former employee,” the health network said. It confirmed that it is investigating the matter. Sansum Clinic itself also condemned the TikTok video on Instagram. The statement stresses that “patient trust and dignity are always our top priority, and any behaviour that violates those standards is unacceptable.”
