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Brinton v. IHC Hospitals12/29/1998
opinion is subject to revision before final publication in the Pacific Reporter.
Third District, Salt Lake County The Honorable Leslie A. Lewis
Plaintiff James A. Brinton appeals the district court's grant of summary judgment in favor of defendant IHC Hospitals, Inc. ("IHC"). Dr. Brinton was a staff member at two IHC hospitals in Utah County for several years. IHC imposed multiple practice restrictions on him and then revoked his hospital privileges. Dr. Brinton then filed suit against IHC in district court.
In the district court, Dr. Brinton asserted nine causes of action, accompanied by demands for compensatory and punitive damages. He also asserted three claims for injunctive or declaratory relief, demanding reinstatement. The trial court decided that each of his claims was ultimately grounded in the assertion that IHC had violated the contractual bylaws governing Dr. Brinton's staff privileges. On cross-motions for summary judgment, the district court ruled in IHC's favor. The court held that Dr. Brinton had waived most of his assertions of contractual violations of the bylaws, and for those claims not waived, that IHC had substantially complied with its bylaws. The district court ruled that none of Dr. Brinton's claims for relief could stand without a showing of substantial violation of the bylaws and dismissed his claims. We affirm.
I. BACKGROUND
Dr. Brinton worked at both Utah Valley Regional Medical Center and Orem Valley Hospital (collectively "the Hospital"). IHC operates both facilities under a unified administrative structure. As a condition to obtaining staff privileges, Dr. Brinton agreed to be bound by Hospital Bylaws (the "Bylaws"). The Bylaws incorporated another document known as the Fair Hearing Plan ("FHP"), which dictates specific procedures for conducting peer review of physicians on staff at the Hospital.
The Hospital's administration is divided into nineteen staff departments. Dr. Brinton belonged to the obstetrics and gynecology ("OB-GYN") department. The basic administrative units concerned with disciplinary actions against physicians with staff privileges at the Hospital are the Medical Executive Committee (the "MEC") and the Governing Board (the "Board").
The MEC is composed of the heads of each department. If a serious quality assurance concern arises, the relevant department head generally reports that concern to the President's Committee of the MEC. The President's Committee serves a filtering function to avoid the unwarranted spread of negative information about a physician. The Committee then determines whether the problem should be reported to the MEC. If the problem is reported, the MEC votes for appropriate action and may recommend restrictions or revocation of hospital privileges to the Governing Board.
The Board is composed of both lay people and persons with medical training and is analogous to a corporate board of directors. It is ultimately responsible for the admission and retention of physicians practicing at the Hospital. The Board has an "Executive Committee" that serves a filtering purpose somewhat analogous to the President's Committee of the MEC. This Executive Committee reviews in detail allegations of substandard care or misconduct and then presents a summary to the Board.
Dr. Brinton, who began working at the Hospital in 1978, had a very busy practice. By 1989, he delivered an average of 45 babies per month, and on occasion delivered as many as 60. Other OB-GYN physicians averaged 24 deliveries per month, and there were very few who routinely performed more than 30 per month. Dr. Brinton performed gynecological procedures as well, but his prac
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