Cancel v. Med. Ctr. of Cent. Ga., Inc.

812 S.E.2d 592
CourtCourt of Appeals of Georgia
DecidedMarch 15, 2018
DocketA17A1708, A17A1709
StatusPublished
Cited by5 cases

This text of 812 S.E.2d 592 (Cancel v. Med. Ctr. of Cent. Ga., Inc.) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering Court of Appeals of Georgia primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
Cancel v. Med. Ctr. of Cent. Ga., Inc., 812 S.E.2d 592 (Ga. Ct. App. 2018).

Opinion

Branch, Judge.

This is the third appearance of this matter before this Court. In late 2002, Louis Goolsby, M.D., the chief executive officer of The Medical Center of Central Georgia, Inc. ("the Medical Center"), and Angel Cancel, M.D., the chief executive officer of Central Georgia Anesthesia Services, Inc. ("CGAS") learned of apparent billing and medical irregularities by CGAS members working at the hospital. After an investigation and the voluntary dissolution of CGAS, the Medical Center declined to rehire four former CGAS members (including Dr. Cancel), all of whom later brought this action against three of their former colleagues ("the individual defendants") as well as the Medical Center, its president and chief executive officer A. Donald Faulk, and Dr. Goolsby ("the hospital defendants").

In Cancel v. Sewell , 321 Ga. App. 523, 740 S.E.2d 870 (2013) ("Cancel I "), we affirmed the trial court's grant of summary judgment as to Dr. Cancel's claims. Id. at 530-536, 740 S.E.2d 870.1 In Sewell v. Cancel , 331 Ga. App. 687, 771 S.E.2d 388 (2015) (" Cancel II "), we reversed the denial of summary judgment to the individual defendants as to the remaining plaintiffs' claims for breach of fiduciary duty and fraud. Id. at 689-695 (2), (3), 771 S.E.2d 388. In the same decision, we vacated the trial court's denial of summary judgment and remanded with direction that the trial court "clarify" whether *595the hospital defendants were immune from prosecution because they had relied on a peer review panel in reaching their decision to terminate CGAS and not to rehire plaintiffs. Id. at 698 (4), 771 S.E.2d 388. On remand from Cancel II , the trial court held that the Medical Center had indeed relied on a peer review panel in reaching its decision to terminate CGAS and held the hospital defendants immune from plaintiffs' claims. On appeal from that judgment in Case No. A17A1708, the remaining plaintiffs assert that the trial court erred in this and other holdings. In Case A17A1709, plaintiffs argue that the trial court erred in denying their motion to supplement the record on appeal. We find no error and affirm in both cases.

To prevail at summary judgment under OCGA § 9-11-56, the moving party must demonstrate that there is no genuine issue of material fact and that the undisputed facts, viewed in the light most favorable to the nonmoving party, warrant judgment as a matter of law. OCGA § 9-11-56 (c). A defendant may do this by showing the court that the documents, affidavits, depositions and other evidence in the record reveal that there is no evidence sufficient to create a jury issue on at least one essential element of plaintiff's case.

Lau's Corp. v. Haskins , 261 Ga. 491, 405 S.E.2d 474 (1991).

Although we thus view the record in a light favorable to plaintiffs, the relevant facts are not in dispute. In 2000, CGAS entered into a contract to provide the Medical Center with all of its anesthesia services. In the fall of 2002, Dr. Cancel and Dr. Goolsby became aware of potentially fraudulent medical chart documentation by some CGAS members. See Cancel I , 321 Ga. App. at 524, 740 S.E.2d 870. Dr. Cancel also became aware of nurses' complaints that anesthesiologists were sometimes absent from surgeries and other procedures for which those doctors were medically responsible. As a result of these allegations of billing and medical improprieties, CGAS sought an evaluation by the American Society of Anesthesiologists (ASA), but Dr. Goolsby, then the Medical Center's vice president for medical affairs, cancelled a scheduled ASA visit without notifying Dr. Cancel. See Cancel I , 321 Ga. App. at 525, 740 S.E.2d 870. The Medical Center then retained Ann Atkinson, a psychological consultant, who interviewed the hospital staff and the CGAS physicians by phone in "listening sessions" held in December 2002 and January 2003. The notes to these sessions, which were produced during discovery, show that Atkinson spoke with all 14 anesthesiologists in nearly 15 hours of conversation and with 41 of 43 nurses in over 11 hours of conversation. On the basis of these sessions, Atkinson concluded that CGAS was suffering from acute dysfunction, including power struggles, threats, "lack of trust," and allegations of sexual misconduct.2

Shortly before a meeting with Atkinson in early 2003, Dr. Pravin Jain, another CGAS anesthesiologist, showed Dr. Goolsby examples of what Dr. Jain considered to be improper medical chart documentation. Over the next three months, Dr. Jain also uncovered billing irregularities by CGAS members. See Cancel I , 321 Ga. App. at 525-526, 740 S.E.2d 870.

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Bluebook (online)
812 S.E.2d 592, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/cancel-v-med-ctr-of-cent-ga-inc-gactapp-2018.