Hospital Admission and Discharge

¶ … legal Briefs

Hill v. Ohio County

468 S.W. 2D 306 (Ky.1971)

Facts lady by the name of Juanita Monroe went to Ohio County Hospital seeking medical assistance. She was pregnant, and the charge nurse she approached assumed she was seeking obstetrical care. The lady also stated that she was afraid she wouldn't be able to make it back to Illinois, where her doctor was, before the baby would be born. The nurse consulted the "on call" doctor and found he was in surgery. The nurse inquired as to whether she should admit this woman. He informed the nurse he did not handle OB cases.

The nurse consulted with the hospital administrator who advised her that another physician was making rounds at that time. The nurse talked to this doctor who said he did not handle "walk-in OBs." The doctors who were permitted to admit patients to this hospital were all private practice physicians who provided services at the hospital but were not employees of the hospital.

The pregnant lady did not tell t he nurse that she had been a patient at the hospital before or that she had consulted another of the physicians who was allowed to admit people to this hospital within the last year.

The lady was advised that she could get OB care in two other communities, however she refused to go. The lady finally went home where her baby was born during the night. The lady called an ambulance driver who had offered her transportation earlier. The driver responded immediately. When he saw the state the woman was in he called Dr. Johnson, one of the doctors who had previously refused care.

He advised the driver to take the woman to Owensboro, about 25 miles away. The woman was dead on arrival.

The hospital rules provide that no one may be admitted without an order from a doctor and Kentucky law provides that no one may practice medicine without a license to do so.

Procedural History:

wrongful death suit was brought against Ohio County, Kentucky the owner of Ohio County Hospital.

Issues:

Did the nurse follow procedure as it was defined by her hospital?

Did the hospital administrator follow procedure as defined by his hospital?

Did the nurse do all she reasonably could for the person within the constraints of her rules of practice?

Did the administrator do all he could within the boundaries of his legal responsibility?

Did the ambulance driver do all within his scope of responsibility to assist the patient?

Holding:

Yes -- the nurse made every attempt to secure aid that was allowed to her by hospital policy.

2. Yes -- the administrator attempted to aid in the securing of services to the limit of his authority.

Yes -- The nurse had no authority to either over-ride the doctors or do anything for the patient not ordered by a doctor.

Yes -- Once he advised the nurse as to what other doctors were available for the nurse to contact, he had fulfilled his responsibility.

Yes -- The ambulance driver, calling the doctor and describing what he found and by transporting the patient according to the instructions of the doctor, filled his responsibility.