Machamer v. Hospital of the University of Pennsylvania

Machamer v. Hospital of the University of
Pennsylvania,
No. 98-6109 (E.D. Penn. May 8, 2000)

Plaintiff sustained a back injury while performing her duties
as a nursing assistant. Once she was cleared by a
physician to return to work, she was placed back on
the day shift for training and observation so that
she could successfully complete her post-hiring
probationary period. Shortly thereafter, however,
plaintiff was terminated because of two patient care
incidents that the defendant believed threatened the
well-being of patients. The nurse filed suit under
the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) claiming
that she was terminated due to her disability and
that the defendant refused to accommodate her
disability by transferring her to the less rigorous
night shift. The court granted summary judgment to
the defendant holding that the plaintiff did not
prove that she was “disabled” within the
meaning of the ADA, pointing to uncontested evidence
that the plaintiff had been cleared by a physician
to return to work without any restrictions. The
court also held that the plaintiff presented no
evidence to contest the defendant’s position that
she was terminated because of the two incidents in
which her actions threatened the well-being of
patients under her care.