Appleyard v. Governor Juan F. Luis Hosp. and Med. Ctr. (Summary)

TEMPORARY RESTRAINING ORDER

Appleyard v. Governor Juan F. Luis Hosp. and Med. Ctr., CIVIL NO. SX-14-CV-282 (V. I. Super. Ct. July 28, 2014)

The Superior Court of the Virgin Islands granted a temporary restraining order enjoining a hospital from maintaining and enforcing a suspension against a spinal surgeon until a hearing can be held to determine if a preliminary injunction is appropriate.

The plaintiff, a spinal surgeon, was suspended from defendant, a government run hospital, for disruptive behavior. The surgeon brought a motion for a temporary restraining order requesting the court to enjoin the hospital from enforcing the suspension and from reporting the suspension to any national reporting database because the hospital did not follow its own bylaws and procedures. Additionally, the surgeon alleged that the hospital did not provide mandatory notice as required by Virgin Island statute for government employees. As a result of these omissions, the surgeon claimed that her due process rights were violated.

The court held that a temporary restraining order was appropriate until a hearing was held to determine whether a preliminary injunction should be entered. The court stated that the surgeon established a reasonable probability that she would succeed at a preliminary injunction hearing because the hospital’s suspension letter did not include information that was required by law. Furthermore, the surgeon would suffer irreparable harm if an erroneous suspension is reported to a national reporting database and no patients are put at risk from the temporary restraining order because the suspension is for behavioral concerns and not her standard of care. Lastly, the temporary restraining order is in the public’s interest because the public has a strong interest in the government following its own rules and laws.