Winger v. Meade Dist. Hosp. – March 2015 (Summary)

TERMINATION OF TEMPORARY PRIVILEGES

Winger v. Meade Dist. Hosp., Case No. 13-1428-JTM (D. Kan. Mar. 9, 2015)

The United States District Court for the District of Kansas granted a hospital’s motion for summary judgment against a due process claim filed by a former employee. The former employee, a physician, sued the hospital after it terminated his employment.

At issue in the case was whether or not the termination deprived the physician of his due process rights. The hospital argued that the physician had explicitly received “limited temporary privileges” and had no rights to any particular procedures under either his employment agreement or the bylaws. Furthermore, the hospital explained that it terminated the physician after receiving reports that he deviated from the standard of care.

The court agreed with the hospital. It focused on the fact that the physician had agreed to receive only temporary privileges, and noted that the bylaws recognize that certain staff members hold “temporary” status and can be terminated without a hearing or appeal. In addition, it recognized that the physician had been under review for providing substandard care to two patients and that he had declined to participate in the hospital’s third party peer review process. Moreover, the physician had instead sent confidential patient information, without authorization, to another doctor for review.

The court ruled that the physician failed to show any deprivation of due process. It granted summary judgment to the hospital.