Essay Question 1
The legal relationship between hospitals and physicians is very complicated. In this case with Amityville Hospital and Dr. Spencer. The hospital is being sued by patient’s estate after a settlement is made with doctor for unlawful death damages. When a hospital hires a doctor as a contractor or employee they must meet certain hospital-mandated criteria to give physicians privileges as independent contractors or as employees. Usually, this includes the right to admit and treat patients in the hospital. Because most hospital hire doctors as independent contractor they are generally not liable for the negligence of the independent contractors, however, since the employing entity does not control the means and methods of the work to be accomplished by the independent contractors they may do as they see fit. This situation lends too many strengths and weakness in this case that Amityville can use in their defense of the estate clam.
Amityville’s strengths in this case is the hospital had no control over what the physician did or does and it not have the power to limit or suspend the privileges of the doctor. Meaning the hospital gave all the responsibility and the control to the physician so it would be less liable for the doctor’s faults. This situation would take vicarious liability off of the hospital and placing blame on the doctor who did the actual procedure on the patient. Another strength that the hospital can argue in its defense that the doctor was an independent contractor contracted to do work for the hospital. For instance, in case
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Hospitals can be sued for medical mal practice when they grant privileges to doctors that are not competent to perform procedure and failure to prevent patient form harm or death. This was the result that leading the estate to file claim against Amityville hospital for unlawful death