Model Says Illinois Doctor Posted Drunk Photos Of Her On Instagram, Sues Hospital
Elena Chernyakova, an actress and model, says the photos were taken when she was in the emergency room at Northwestern Memorial Hospital for extreme intoxication in June. Dr. Vinaya Puppala allegedly snapped the photos while she was "on the hospital bed, crying and attached to an IV," according to the complaint cited by ABC.
Puppala, who knew Chernyakova through a mutual friend, then allegedly posted the photos on Instagram and Facebook along with his own "commentary" about her drunken state. She says she felt violated, and that the pictures could hurt her job prospects, according to a summary of the complaint from Courthouse News Service.
"Plaintiff is a Northwestern graduate with a bright future ahead of her, with potential to someday work for Fortune 500 companies, which may now not occur because of said photographs," the complaint stated.
Northwestern told ABC in a statement that it had a "zero tolerance" policy for privacy invasion — including photography of patients.