Question 1
Answer the
specific questions asked at the end of the following essay based on the fact
situation provided. Your answer should be complete and in essay
form. Explain the legal basis behind your answer and present both sides
of an issue before coming to a conclusion.
Acme Regional
Hospital is a private rural hospital with a full service emergency
room that handles most emergencies. It is, in fact the only emergency room in
a 25 mile radius. The hospital does not employ the physicians
directly, but contracts with Docs-R-Us Inc., a national medical staffing
agency. Although Docs-R-Us provides the physician, the hospital does not allow
any physician to practice in the emergency room or anywhere else in the
hospital without applying and being granted staff privileges.
As part of the
staff privilege process, each doctor applying to ACME Regional Hospital is
subjected to a rigorous application and credentialing process.
Dr. Sturgeon
is a board certified emergency room physician, employed by Docs-R-Us,
Inc. who was placed at, and given staff privileges for Acme’s Emergency Room.
His contract with Docs-R-Us designate Dr. Sturgeon as an employee of Docs-R-Us
and he is paid a salary, after taxes are withheld. In the application process,
he affirmatively indicted that six years prior he had been treated for alcohol
addiction. In investigating this matter, the hospital found that Dr. Sturgeon
had numerous malpractice cases and had been suspended by the State licensing
Board in connection with two of those cases. Because his license was restored
and unencumbered at the time he applied, and Docs-R-Us indicated he was the
only E.R. doc available, the hospital granted him privileges.
The Emergency
Room for Acme Regional has a clearly posted sign which reads:
THE PHYSICIANS
PRACTICING IN THIS EMERGENCY ROOM ARE NOT EMPLOYEES OF ACME REGIONAL HOSPITAL.
THEY ARE INDEPENDENT PHYSICIANS, AS ARE ALL PHYSICIANS PRACTICING IN THIS
HOSPITAL.
One night,
Joe Prep, a local college student was brought to the hospital emergency room
where he was immediately seen by Dr. Sturgeon. Joe was brought in by his
fraternity brothers who reported that he had been drinking and was standing on
a table at the fraternity house singing the school fight song and fell, onto
the floor striking his head. Joe was lethargic and incoherent when he entered
the hospital and did not become more lucid before the doctor examined him.
Based upon the facts surrounding the injury, as well as his blood alcohol
level, Dr. Sturgeon decided that Joe had merely suffered a superficial
contusion (bruise) to his head and was otherwise just very drunk. He then sent
Joe home with his fraternity brothers and Joe expired during the night due to
an undiagnosed severe subdural hematoma (bleeding in the brain).
Joe’s family
has filed suit and has an expert physician who will testify that Dr. Sturgeon
fell below the standard of care by not further working up the head injury and
that a proper diagnosis might have saved Joe’s life.
Dr. Sturgeon’s attorney retained an expert who will testify that even
had the hematoma been recognized, Joe would have expired from this massive
bleed no matter what treatment was attempted.
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