Hospital Good Samaritans Give Courts Lingering Malpractice Liability Headache

Medical Malpractice

April 18, 2005

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Rockford, IL - Courts have been increasingly called upon to determine whether doctors acting in emergency situations in hospitals in which they work can avoid liability for malpractice by relying on the state's Good Samaritan Act, 745 ILCS 49/25. The case of Debra Heanue illuminates the problem. Debra underwent an elective dialysis catheter insertion at Swedish American Hospital in Rockford and while in the recovery room, a problem developed regarding her medication. After a nurse tried to page the surgeon, who was unavailable, she asked for the immediate assistance of another surgeon. Dr. Leslie Edgcomb took over the treatment of Heanue, who later died.

A medical malpractice lawsuit ensued, and in it, the defendant cited the Good Samaritan Act as shielding him with immunity for the care and treatment he provided because he did not charge a fee for his emergency room services. Section 25 of Illinois's Good Samaritan Act states that any person licensed under the state Medical Practice Act "who in good faith provides emergency care without fee to a person, shall not, as a result of his or her acts or omissions, except willful or wanton misconduct on the part of the person... be liable for civil damages." The plaintiff, however, did receive a number of bills for treatment rendered before and after the emergency care, including bills on that very day. These bills included time for the services of the defendant.

An appeals court strictly construed the term "fee". Noting that although the trial court found "defendant's professional relationship with Rockford Surgical was 'troubling' in that it suggested the existence of a preexisting duty to render care to Debra," Id., and ultimately concluded that no such duty existed, the appeals court reversed because a factual question existed as to whether the surgeon acted in good faith or did not charge a fee so as to trigger the Good Samaritan statute. Estate of Debra A. Heanue v. Edgcomb, No. 2-03-1297, 2d Dist.

The case underscores the troubling relationship between doctors and hospitals for the apparent purpose of avoiding liability. Part of the problem lies in the difficulty of determining which physician is a staff physician and who is an independently contracted physician with privileges to use that hospital.

Another part of the problem has been the tendency of Illinois courts to liberally construe the Good Samaritan Act to include incidents occurring in hospitals, something not initially contemplated by the Legislature. And while the Act was originally enacted to encourage Good Samaritans to do the right thing on the streets of Illinois, without fear of repercussions in a court of law, it is clear that courts have liberally construed the plain language of the act and have applied it to emergency situations at hospitals.

The question now is, will courts return to a strict construction as in the case of Debra Heaneu, or will the law continue to be twisted to allow doctors to avoid responsibility when negligence has occurred.

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