Lake Cumberland Regional Hospital, LLC v. Helen Adams
2016 SC 000181
| Ky. | Oct 31, 2017Background
- Three consolidated Kentucky cases challenged hospitals’ liability for granting staff privileges to non-employee physicians (Adams, Jones/Epley, Spalding). Plaintiffs alleged hospitals were negligent in credentialing physicians who later harmed patients.
- Adams: Lake Cumberland Regional Hospital granted privileges to Dr. Guy Sava despite prior chemical-dependence treatment and peer reservations; plaintiff sued for negligent credentialing after spinal surgeries caused complications. Trial court dismissed negligent-credentialing claim; appeal followed.
- Jones: Spring View Hospital granted privileges to Dr. Daniel Bailey though his application omitted board-certification details; Jones sued after knee surgeries with complications and added negligent-credentialing claim; trial court dismissed that claim as unrecognized; statute-of-limitations issues also contested.
- Spalding: Joseph Spalding underwent surgeries by Dr. Bailey at Spring View, resulting in amputation after complications. Spaldings pursued negligent-credentialing claim against Spring View; trial court granted summary judgment partly for lack of adequate expert proof and because the plaintiffs settled with the doctor (bankruptcy) without admission of fault.
- Court of Appeals recognized negligent credentialing as a distinct tort and remanded some claims; the Kentucky Supreme Court granted review to decide whether Kentucky recognizes negligent credentialing as a separate cause of action.
Issues
| Issue | Plaintiff's Argument | Defendant's Argument | Held |
|---|---|---|---|
| Whether Kentucky should recognize negligent credentialing as a separate tort | Plaintiffs: hospitals owe an independent duty to ensure competent staff and should be directly liable for negligently granting/maintaining privileges | Hospitals: no separate tort is necessary; existing negligence/malpractice doctrines and statutory frameworks suffice; recognizing new tort raises policy and resource concerns | Court declined to recognize negligent credentialing as a new, standalone tort; plaintiffs may proceed under ordinary negligence principles |
| Whether Adams’s negligent-credentialing claim was properly dismissed on pleadings | Adams: claim viable under common-law negligence theory and should not be dismissed solely because tort is labeled negligent credentialing | LCRH: no recognized cause of action exists | Trial court erred to the extent it dismissed on that ground; Adams remanded for further proceedings |
| Whether Jones’s claim was time-barred under KRS 413.140(1)(e) (one-year statute) | Jones: discovery rule delayed accrual until she had sufficient notice of hospital culpability (2012 discovery from Spalding discovery responses); attorney knowledge from other clients should not be imputed | Spring View: plaintiff knew or should have known earlier (2009–2010) and attorney’s knowledge imputable | Court held genuine fact issues exist; attorney knowledge not imputed here; summary judgment on limitations reversed and case remanded |
| Whether Spaldings’ claim survived summary judgment given settlement with doctor and expert proof | Spaldings: settlement with doctor (bankruptcy) did not bar hospital claim; expert evidence supported breach of credentialing duty | Spring View: settlement and bankruptcy extinguished indemnity and prejudiced defense; plaintiffs lacked sufficient expert proof and bylaws do not elevate standard of care | Court affirmed summary judgment for Spring View: settlement did not bar claim but plaintiffs’ expert failed to state correct legal standard, so judgment affirmed |
Key Cases Cited
- Darling v. Charleston Cmty. Mem'l Hosp., 211 N.E.2d 253 (Ill. 1965) (origin of the negligent-credentialing theory)
- Illinois Cent. R. Co. v. Buchanan, 103 S.W. 272 (Ky. 1907) (early Kentucky recognition of hospital duty to select competent practitioners)
- Giuliani v. Guiler, 951 S.W.2d 318 (Ky. 1997) (courts may develop common law where legislature has not spoken)
- Wiseman v. Alliant Hospitals, Inc., 37 S.W.3d 709 (Ky. 2000) (discovery rule for accrual of medical-malpractice claims)
- Blair v. Eblen, 461 S.W.2d 370 (Ky. 1970) (standard-of-care jury instruction for medical negligence)
- Rogers v. Kasdan, 612 S.W.2d 133 (Ky. 1981) (limitations on jury instructions that create duties beyond ordinary care)
- Reams v. Stutler, 642 S.W.2d 586 (Ky. 1982) (medical malpractice as a branch of negligence)
- Schelling v. Humphrey, 916 N.E.2d 1029 (Ohio 2009) (example of jurisdictional treatment of negligent credentialing and bifurcation practice)