Westmoreland hospital, former nurses sued over patient photos

A Greensburg hospital and two fired nurses have been named as defendants in a negligence lawsuit filed by the daughter of one of up to 10 former patients whose images were recorded and distributed without consent last year.

The three-count lawsuit filed last month contends Independence Health System Westmoreland Hospital and former nurses Peter Castellano and Melissa Tompkins inflicted emotional distress on 105-year-old Madeline Buchek during a hospital stay in June 2024.

A spokeswoman for Independence Health on Monday declined to comment on the allegations contained in lawsuit.

Greensburg police said Buchek, a U.S. Marine Corps veteran who died in July 2024, was among an estimated 10 victims who were inappropriately photographed and recorded during their hospital stays. According to court records, police said Castellano and Tompkins had improper interactions with patients and took photos and videos of them without consent.

In some of those photos, patients were naked inside their hospital rooms, while others were partially clothed, police said. In one instance, Castellano is accused of superimposing co-workers’ faces on a photo of a naked patient.

“The defendants’ … conduct was (a) gross and substantial deviation from the standard of care (and) that their treatment of plaintiff was reckless and done with a conscious disregard to the probability of substantial harm to plaintiffs such that punitive damages are warranted,” according to the lawsuit.

The lawsuit alleges that Buchek suffered emotional distress as a result of the crimes, that the hospital failed to properly train staff and protect patients and that it was responsible for its employees’ actions.

Castellano, 37, of Pittsburgh’s Fineview neighborhood, and Tompkins, 37, of Baldwin, were fired last year after another employee reported their conduct. Both pleaded guilty in August to a reduced set of criminal charges.

They pleaded guilty to misdemeanor counts of abuse of a care-dependent person. Felony counts of intercepted communications were dismissed. Prosecutors said during a court hearing this summer the deal was struck to ensure Castellano and Tompkins served jail time, something that was unlikely had they been convicted at trial, as a result of sentencing guidelines.

They were both sentenced to serve 30 days to one year in jail. Castellano began serving his sentence in late August and was paroled from jail on Sept. 18, according to court records. Tompkins reported to Westmoreland County prison in October and was paroled Nov. 3.