Mahmud v. Bon Secours Charity Health Sys.

PEER REVIEW

Mahmud v. Bon Secours Charity Health Sys.,
No.
03 CIV. 1074 (WCC) (S.D.N.Y. Oct. 31, 2003)

The District Court for the Southern District of New York dismissed a physician’s
claims against a hospital and several medical staff leaders because the physician
failed to first file a complaint with New York’s Public Health Council ("PHC").
The physician claimed that the hospital conspired in restraint of trade, discriminated
against her based on her ethnic background, and committed slander when it failed
to reappoint her to the medical staff. Under New York law, physician complaints
against hospitals that call into question the quality of the medical care provided
by the physician must first be filed with the PHC. The court noted that the
purpose of this requirement is to take advantage of the PHC’s "peculiar
expertise to assess whether a hospital had a sound medical reason for terminating
a physician’s
privileges." The court found that the physician’s allegations of discrimination
and antitrust violations depended on the quality of care she provided. Thus,
they should have been filed initially with the PHC. The court also found that
the physician’s slander claims did not have to be filed initially with the
PHC, but that the physician had failed to allege the elements necessary to
state a
claim for relief.