Appeals court orders hospital to turn over staffing records

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A state appeals court has reversed a lower court decision and ordered a hospital to turn over staffing records to a plaintiff in a medical malpractice lawsuit.

Plaintiff Jerry Murphy filed a medical malpractice lawsuit in July 2020 in Erie County against Kaleida Health (DBA Millard Fillmore Suburban Hospital).

The complaint seeks damages resulting from a large pressure ulcer that allegedly developed on Murphy’s lower back during the 20 days he was admitted to the hospital.

Murphy alleges that the hospital was negligent and deviated from the applicable standard of care in several ways, including by failing to provide a complete and proper physical exam, failing to take steps to minimize the risk of developing ulcers, and failing to properly monitor Murphy and his condition.

During discovery, Murphy requested that the hospital provide him with its staffing plan, staffing schedule, and attendance records of employees who worked in the intensive care unit (ICU) during the month of November 2017, which covered his 20-day admission.

The hospital objected to the demand on grounds that it was vague, overbroad, unduly burdensome, and not reasonably calculated to lead to the discovery of relevant information.

The hospital claimed the records were irrelevant because, among other reasons, there were “no allegations of improper staffing in the bill of particulars.”

Subsequently, Murphy served an amended bill of particulars alleging that the hospital was negligent “in failing to properly hire, staff, train, educate, supervise and/or monitor its agents, servants, and/or employees, thereby exposing (Murphy) to serious physical injuries.”

State Supreme Court Justice J. David Sampson, in August 2024, denied Murphy’s motion to compel the defendant to disclose its staffing plan, staffing schedule and attendance records of employees who worked in the intensive care unit during the month of November 2017.

Murphy appealed to the Appellate Division of state Supreme Court, Fourth Department.

“Defendant’s staffing plan, staffing schedule and time records for the ICU for the month of November 2017 are material and necessary to the prosecution of plaintiff’s negligence and malpractice causes of action,” the Fourth Department ruled.

“More specifically, the numbers of doctors, nurses and physician assistants who were working in the ICU when plaintiff allegedly developed his ulcer are relevant to his claim in the amended bill of particulars that defendant failed to hire enough medical personnel to staff the ICU,” the panel wrote.

“It is also material and necessary for plaintiff to know which employees were scheduled to be on duty in the ICU during the 20 days of his admission, and which ones actually showed up for work,” the court ruled.

“We therefore conclude that the court abused its discretion in denying plaintiff’s motion to the extent that it sought an order compelling defendant to disclose the requested records, and in granting defendant’s cross-motion to the extent that it sought a protective order for such records, and we therefore modify the order accordingly,” the court wrote.

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