Bedin v. Nw. Mem'l Hosp.
| Decision Date | 09 April 2021 |
| Docket Number | 1-19-0723 |
| Citation | 2021 IL App (1st) 190723,187 N.E.3d 739,453 Ill.Dec. 286 |
| Parties | Janet BEDIN, Plaintiff-Appellant, v. NORTHWESTERN MEMORIAL HOSPITAL, Defendant-Appellee. |
| Court | United States Appellate Court of Illinois |
Deidre Baumann, of Baumann & Shuldiner, of Chicago, for appellant.
Sandra G. Iorio and Catherine Ó Súilleabháin, of Anderson, Rasor & Partners, LLP, of Chicago, for appellee.
¶ 1 Plaintiff, Janet Bedin, appeals from the circuit court's order that granted defendant Northwestern Memorial Hospital's (Northwestern) section 2-619 motion ( 735 ILCS 5/2-619 (West 2018) ) to dismiss her amended complaint for intentional infliction of emotional distress based on the absolute litigation privilege. On appeal, plaintiff contends that defendant failed to establish that the communications at issue were subject to the absolute litigation privilege. She argues that defendant did not provide any evidence that the statements at issue were made to plaintiff before and in contemplation of the guardianship proceeding. We affirm.
¶ 3 In September 2010, plaintiff's mother, Dolores Bedin, was admitted to Northwestern and subsequently diagnosed with pancreatic cancer.1 Plaintiff, individually, and as executrix of the estate of Dolores Bedin (decedent), and Janet Bedin's brother, Alexander Bedin, filed a complaint against defendant and various physicians that alleged claims for intentional infliction of emotional distress (IIED) and abuse of process relating to defendant's conduct when Dolores was admitted to Northwestern in September 2010.2 The circuit court granted defendant's motion to dismiss the amended complaint based on the statute of limitations. On appeal, we affirmed the circuit court's dismissal of the abuse of process claim and the IIED claims filed by Alex and Dolores's estate, but we remanded for further proceedings on Janet's IIED claim. Bedin v. Northwestern Hospital , 2017 IL App (1st) 151547-U, ¶ 49, 2017 WL 499891.
¶ 5 Our previous decision, Bedin , 2017 IL App (1st) 151547-U, set forth in detail the facts leading up to that appeal. The following is a limited recitation of the previous case history in addition to the facts necessary to understand the background and progression of this case since the initial appeal.
¶ 6 On November 13, 2012, Janet, individually, and on behalf of Dolores's estate, and Alexander filed a complaint against defendant, certain physicians, and other healthcare professionals that alleged various claims, including abuse of process and IIED. On March 26, 2013, Janet, individually, and on behalf of the Dolores's estate, and Alexander filed an amended complaint only against defendant and alleged claims for abuse of process and IIED.
¶ 7 Janet, Dolores's estate, and Alexander alleged as follows. On September 1, 2010, Dolores had severe episodes of vomiting and was taken to defendant's emergency department. Defendant informed Dolores that a computed tomography scan from April 2010 indicated that she had pancreatic cancer. On September 15, 2010, Dolores could not walk without assistance. On that same day, a physician at Northwestern informed Janet that Dolores could walk without assistance and that, therefore, Medicare would no longer pay for her hospitalization. Representatives from Northwestern also told Janet that Medicare would not reimburse any acute rehabilitation, that defendant would charge $2500 per day if Janet and Dolores did not agree to defendant's discharge recommendation, and that Dolores's home would be taken away from her to pay her hospital bill. On September 28, 2010, representatives from Northwestern met with Janet regarding Dolores's discharge and told her, among other things, that "we checked with our attorneys and if you don't take your mother out of the hospital we are going to take her away from you" and "we will have a Public Guardian assigned to make all decisions for her [Dolores] and you [(Janet)] will not be involved in her [(Dolores's)] care." On October 22, 2010, in the circuit court of Winnebago County, defendant filed a petition for temporary guardianship of Dolores and a petition for appointment of a guardian for a disabled person. Defendant also filed a petition to invalidate, suspend, and/or revoke Janet's power of attorney.
¶ 8 Janet, Dolores's estate, and Alexander alleged claims for abuse of process and IIED. With respect to the abuse of process claim, they alleged as follows. Defendant filed the petitions in the guardianship proceeding "with the improper purpose of coercing, harassing and intimidating Janet, Dolores[,] and Alexander to acquiesce to the Discharge Recommendation despite the Disagreement." Janet, Dolores, and Alexander were damaged by defendant's conduct because it caused Janet to hire a lawyer and personal caregivers while Dolores was in the hospital. With respect to the IIED claim, they alleged that defendant conducted itself in an extreme and outrageous manner that went beyond all possible bounds of decency when it, inter alia , filed petitions in the guardianship proceeding for the improper purpose of coercing, harassing, and intimidating Janet, Dolores, and Alexander to acquiesce to the discharge recommendation.
¶ 10 The common-law record contains various documents that were attached to the original and amended complaints as well as defendant's motion to dismiss filed in the initial action before the first appeal. We will summarize some of those documents below.3
¶ 11 A September 20, 2010, letter addressed to Dolores from IFMC-IL, a quality improvement organization authorized by Medicare to review inpatient services provided to Medicare patients, stated that Janet had contacted IFMC-IL on September 15, 2010, because she was concerned Dolores was being discharged too soon. The letter stated that IFMC-IL agreed with defendant's discharge plan and that the physician reviewer found it was appropriate for Dolores to be discharged from an inpatient level of care. The letter informed Dolores that she would be responsible for any payments not covered by Medicare and that defendant may send her a bill for any services provided to her starting September 18, 2010.
¶ 12 There is also an undated letter addressed to Janet and signed by Northwestern physicians Dr. Stevie Mazyck and Dr. Joseph Munsayac, which stated as follows:
In the letter, the physicians also stated: "Since your mother defers all of her medical decision making to you and you have been unable or unwilling to assist her in this discharge, we plan to file for a court appointed guardian to be assigned to your mother to help facilitate her discharge."
¶ 13 Defendant's petitions filed in the guardianship proceeding in Winnebago County as well as the guardian ad litem (GAL) report are also included in the common-law record. Defendant's petition for a temporary guardian stated that Dolores was a patient at Northwestern and had been ready for discharge since September 18, 2010. The petition stated that Dolores appointed Janet as power of attorney on September 28, 2010, that Janet and Dolores refused to participate in the discharge plan, and that a temporary guardian was necessary to effect discharge planning and placement. Defendant's petition to invalidate, suspend, and/or revoke the power of attorney alleged as follows. Dolores had been ready for discharge since September 18, 2010. On September 28, 2010, Dolores executed a power of attorney for healthcare appointing Janet, who refused to participate with professional staff to make the appropriate discharge plan for Dolores. Janet put Dolores at an increased risk of infection due to unnecessary continued hospitalization.
¶ 14 The report of the GAL, who was appointed to evaluate whether the appointment of a permanent guardian was appropriate, was filed on November 9, 2010. The report stated: The GAL concluded that defendant's "only interest is in getting Dolores out of the hospital" and that Janet was "an appropriate person to make the decisions for Dolores, however, I believe in this particular case, concerning the placement of Dolores, Janet may be trying to get something from the hospital, that the hospital may not be willing to provide."
¶ 15 The orders entered in the guardianship proceeding in the circuit court of Winnebago County are also included in the common-law record. On November 9, 2010, the circuit court in Winnebago County entered an order stating that the parties agreed that Dolores would be discharged from Northwestern on November 12, 2010, and that Northwestern would provide at-home care for 14 days following her discharge. Thereafter, on December 2, 2012, the court entered an order stating that it denied Janet's motion to vacate the November 9, 2012, order and that the case was closed.
¶ 17 Defendant filed a section 2-619.1 motion to dismiss ( 735 ILCS 5/2-619.1 (West 2012) ) the...
To continue reading
Request your trial