Palms West Hospital Ltd. Partnership v. Burns

83 So. 3d 785, 2011 WL 5964360, 2011 Fla. App. LEXIS 18986
CourtDistrict Court of Appeal of Florida
DecidedNovember 30, 2011
DocketNo. 4D10-3629
StatusPublished
Cited by11 cases

This text of 83 So. 3d 785 (Palms West Hospital Ltd. Partnership v. Burns) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering District Court of Appeal of Florida primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
Palms West Hospital Ltd. Partnership v. Burns, 83 So. 3d 785, 2011 WL 5964360, 2011 Fla. App. LEXIS 18986 (Fla. Ct. App. 2011).

Opinion

PER CURIAM.

Palms West Hospital (Palms West) petitions this court for a writ of certiorari following the circuit court’s denial of its motion to dismiss respondent Charles H. Burns’ third amended complaint for failure to follow pre-suit procedures under the Florida Medical Malpractice Act. See § 766.102, Fla. Stat. (2009). We find that [787]*787this was a departure from the essential requirements of the law and grant the petition.

Respondent/plaintiff Burns is the personal representative of the estate of Enrique Casasnovas. In 2006, Casasnovas was taken to the Palms West emergency room with complaints of abdominal pain, nausea and vomiting blood. Upon examination, he was found to have elevated blood sugar and in diabetic ketoacidosis. It was determined that Casasnovas was suffering from an emergency medical condition and that he was in need of a gas-troenterologist; however, none were available on the premises. Every off-site doctor that Palms West contacted refused to come to the hospital to treat Casasno-vas. The respondent alleges that this is because he did not have insurance. Ca-sasnovas was transferred to North Bro-ward Medical Center where he subsequently died.

Casasnovas’ estate filed suit against Palms West alleging inter alia that the hospital negligently retained physicians who it knew would not treat patients without insurance. The respondent claimed that the hospital was aware its doctors would not show up to treat uninsured patients, as a similar incident happened one month prior to Casasnovas’ death.

The respondent alleged that Palms West had a non-delegable duty to provide emergency room services and care to any persons presenting themselves requesting such care. They maintained that Palms West had an agreement with one or more physicians in the field of gastroenterology; they alleged that the doctors, directly or indirectly, had an agreement and/or contract with Palms West to provide emergency room services and care and therefore had a duty to do so. The complaint alleged that Palms West was responsible for ensuring that a physician in the gas-troenterology field was available to treat Casasnovas. It further alleged that because of the slow treatment of Casasnovas, he died. Prior to this, Palms West allegedly knew that these doctors might refuse to treat patients as they did not believe they were provided sufficient compensation or medical malpractice insurance by Palms West. The complaint went on to allege that Palms West refused to terminate its relationship with these doctors and that it was vicariously liable for the doctors’ acts or omissions.

Palms West sought to dismiss the claims for failure to follow the pre-suit screening procedures. It asserted that the claims arose from the rendering of, or the failure to render, medical services and the suit was therefore a medical negligence action subject to dismissal for failure to follow pre-suit procedures. It further argued that with regard to a statutory cause of action based upon section 766.110, Florida Statutes (2009) (duty to assure competence of medical staff members), this theory is predicated upon the provision of non-negligent care to patients and implicates the pre-suit requirements. The court dismissed the bulk of respondent’s claims; however, it found that the two claims alleging negligent retention of physicians and the hospital’s duty to assure competent staff members were not medical negligence claims. It is from this order which Palms West seeks certiorari review.

In order to receive certiorari relief, a petitioner must show that the circuit court departed from the essential elements of law and the order will cause irreparable injury not remedial on direct appeal. Bared & Co., Inc. v. McGuire, 670 So.2d 153, 156 (Fla. 4th DCA 1996). It is well-settled that “[ejertiorari is appropriate to review an order denying a motion to dismiss which claims the pre-suit requirements of Chapter 766 have not been met.” [788]*788Cent. Fla. Reg’l Hosp. v. Hill, 721 So.2d 404, 405 (Fla. 5th DCA 1998).

Irreparable harm can be shown where a court incorrectly denies a motion to dismiss for failure to follow pre-suit requirements, as doing so would eliminate the cost-saving features the Act was intended to create. Dr. Navarro’s Vein Ctr. of the Palm Beach, Inc. v. Miller, 22 So.3d 776, 778-79 (Fla. 4th DCA 2009). The Florida Supreme Court has made it clear that the pre-suit screening procedures should be read in a way which favors access to the courts. Integrated Health Care Servs., Inc. v. Lang-Redway, 840 So.2d 974, 980 (Fla.2002).

The petitioner now asserts that Ca-sasnovas’ two remaining claims arise out of the rendering of, or failure to render, medical services. After careful consideration, we find that these claims do arise under the Florida Medical Malpractice Act and that the trial court departed from the essential requirements of law when it did not dismiss the claims for failure of respondent to follow pre-suit procedures.

A “‘[c]laim for medical negligence’ or ‘claim for medical malpractice’ means a claim, arising out of the rendering of, or the failure to render, medical care or services.” See § 766.106(1)(a), Fla. Stat. (2009); see also J.B. v. Sacred Heart Hosp. of Pensacola, 635 So.2d 945, 948-49 (Fla.1994).

This court accepts as true all of the factual assertions made in the complaint, see, e.g., Gladstone v. Smith, 729 So.2d 1002, 1003 (Fla. 4th DCA 1999), and finds that the hospital’s negligent retention of doctors who failed to treat Casasnovas, ultimately causing his death, is a claim arising under the Medical Malpractice Act.

Of particular import is that Casas-novas was treated by Palms West. It was during his initial treatment that hospital personnel determined that a GI doctor was required. The failure of the on-call doctors to respond, which respondent alleges resulted in Casasnovas’ death, sounds in medical negligence, even if the doctors’ motives were purely economic. Palms West’s retention of these doctors, who the hospital knew were making financial decisions to refuse to treat patients lacking insurance, is a medical negligence claim where the respondent is claiming that Ca-sasnovas’ death resulted from the lack of treatment. While we acknowledge that “[n]ot every wrongful act by a medical provider is medical malpractice,” see, e.g., Quintanilla v. Coral Gables Hosp., Inc., 941 So.2d 468, 469 (Fla. 3d DCA 2006), we hold that Palms West’s alleged negligent retention of doctors who failed to treat patients and the hospital’s continued staffing of these doctors are claims arising under the Medical Malpractice Act and implicate pre-suit requirements.

This court issued Indian River Memorial Hospital, Inc. v. Browne, 44 So.3d 237, 239 (Fla. 4th DCA 2010), and reversed a trial court order which determined pre-suit provisions did not apply. In that case, a patient was admitted to the emergency room in a disoriented state. He fell off of a stretcher and suffered head injuries, which caused his death. His estate alleged the hospital improperly supervised him by leaving his bed’s guardrail insecure. Id. at 238. We found that complaint alleged a medical negligence claim. Id. “The standard of care for the hospital’s treatment of Browne is based in part on the hospital’s evaluation of his medical condition when he was admitted to the emergency room.” Id. at 238-39.

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Cite This Page — Counsel Stack

Bluebook (online)
83 So. 3d 785, 2011 WL 5964360, 2011 Fla. App. LEXIS 18986, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/palms-west-hospital-ltd-partnership-v-burns-fladistctapp-2011.