A former hospice physician has alleged wrongful termination and retaliation against San Francisco-based Sutter Visiting Nurse Association and Hospice Sutter Care at Home, the Northern California Record reported Jan. 23.
The complaint was filed by Kamaldip Ghei, MD, on Jan. 10, according to the report, and centers around his employment as a hospice physician starting in August 2022. Dr. Ghei alleges that he was wrongfully terminated after raising concerns about the group's practices around patient care. He specifically alleges that he was pressured to keep patients in hospice care even when it was not medically justified.
In May 2023, Dr. Ghei opposed the continued hospice of a patient identified as "R.M." He claims that he faced "persistent pressure" to reevaluate the patient after he and other providers agreed that the patient should be discharged from hospice care. He stated his concerns in an email, writing, "I do not want to do anything fraudulent and keeping her on seems fraudulent to me." He alleges this pushback led to his contract not being renewed in June 2023.
Dr. Ghei's lawsuit accuses Sutter of violating California law prohibiting retaliation against his refusal to engage in what he claims were fraudulent activities and outlines how he believes his professional judgment was undermined, ultimately leading to his dismissal. Dr. Ghei is pursuing both income-related damages and general damages for emotional distress. He also requests declaratory relief regarding an arbitration agreement he signed with Sutter Care, which he claims contains provisions violating California law.
"We disagree with Dr. Ghei’s allegations and intend to defend this matter in court. We do not comment on the specific allegations at issue in ongoing litigation," said a Sutter Health spokesperson in an emailed statement shared with Becker's. "At Sutter Health, compassionate and safe patient care is central to our mission. We are committed to always doing what is best for our patients to ensure they receive the highest quality and safest care possible. We encourage our employees and caregivers to speak up on behalf of our patients and ensure they are free from any negative repercussions when they do so."