Glandon v. Keokuk County Health Center

• Decision Date: 23 December 2005
• Docket Number: No. 4:04-CV-10355-RAW.,4:04-CV-10355-RAW.
• Citation: 408 F.Supp.2d 759
• Parties: Dan GLANDON, Plaintiff v. KEOKUK COUNTY HEALTH CENTER, Defendant.
• Court: U.S. District Court — Southern District of Iowa

408 F.Supp.2d 759

Dan GLANDON, Plaintiff v. KEOKUK COUNTY HEALTH CENTER, Defendant.

No. 4:04-CV-10355-RAW.

United States District Court, S.D. Iowa, Central Division.

December 23, 2005.

Michael J. Carroll, Babich Goldman Cashatt & Renzo PC, Des Moines, IA, for Plaintiff.

Michele M. Ramsey, Duncan Green Brown Langeness & Eckley PC, Thomas W. Foley, Nyemaster Goode Voigts West Hansell & O'Brien, PC, Des Moines, IA, for Defendant.

RULING ON DEFENDANT'S MOTION FOR SUMMARY JUDGMENT

WALTERS, United States Magistrate Judge.

Defendant's resisted Motion for Summary Judgment (# 28) is before the Court following hearing. Plaintiff Dan Glandon was Director of Ambulance Services for defendant Keokuk County Health Center (KCHC) until his employment was terminated on July 3, 2003. On January 13, 2004, Glandon filed a lawsuit in the Iowa District Court for Keokuk County in which he brought two causes of action: wrongful termination in violation of Iowa's Veterans Preference statute, Iowa Code § 35C.6 (Count I) and a common law claim of retaliatory termination in violation of public policy (Count II). On June 24, 2004 he was allowed to amend his petition to bring a causes of action for violation of his Free Speech rights under the First Amendment to the U.S. Constitution, one under the authority of 42 U.S.C. § 1983 (Count III), and the other a non-statutory direct action (Count IV). KCHC then removed this action to federal court on July 7, 2004.

In connection with these proceedings plaintiff concedes summary judgment is appropriate with respect to the direct constitutional claim in Count IV. See Bishop v. Tice, 622 F.2d 349, 356 n. 12 (8th Cir.1980). That count will be dismissed without further comment.

The Court has federal question jurisdiction of the federal civil rights claim, 28 U.S.C. § 1331, and supplemental jurisdiction over the state law claims, 28 U.S.C. § 1367(a). The case is before the undersigned pursuant to 28 U.S.C. § 636(c).

I. SUMMARY JUDGMENT

Defendant is entitled to summary judgment if the affidavits, pleadings, and discovery materials show "there is no genuine issue as to any material fact and that the moving party is entitled to judgment as a matter of law." Allsup, Inc. v. Advantage 2000 Consultants, Inc., 428 F.3d 1135, 1138 (8th Cir.2005); Lund v. Hennepin County, 427 F.3d 1123, 1125 (8th Cir.2005); Grabovac v. Allstate Ins. Co., 426 F.3d 951, 955 (8th Cir.2005); Erenberg v. Methodist Hospital, 357 F.3d 787, 791 (8th Cir.2004); Fed.R.Civ.P. 56(c); see Baucom v. Holiday Companies, 428 F.3d 764, 766 (8th Cir.2005). The Court must view the facts in the light most favorable to the nonmoving party, and give that party the benefit of all reasonable inferences which can be drawn from them, "that is, those inferences which may be drawn without resorting to speculation." Mathes v. Furniture Brands Int'l, Inc., 266 F.3d 884, 885-86 (8th Cir.2001) (citing Sprenger v. Federal Home Loan Bank of Des Moines, 253 F.3d 1106, 1110 (8th Cir.2001)); see Matsushita Elec. Indus. Co., Ltd. v. Zenith Radio Corp., 475 U.S. 574, 587, 106 S.Ct. 1348, 89 L.Ed.2d 538 (1986); Howard v. Columbia Public School Dist., 363 F.3d 797, 800 (8th Cir.2004) ("unreasonable inferences or sheer speculation" not accepted as fact); Erenberg 357 F.3d at 791. An issue of material fact is genuine if it has a real basis in the record. Hartnagel v. Normans 953 F.2d 394, 395 (8th Cir.1992) (citing Matsushita, 475 U.S. at 586-87, 106 S.Ct. 1348 (1986)). A genuine issue of fact is material if it "might affect the outcome of the suit under governing law." Hartnagel, 953 F.2d at 395 (quoting Anderson v. Liberty Lobby, Inc., 477 U.S. 242, 248, 106 S.Ct. 2505, 91 L.Ed.2d 202 (1986)); see Hitt v. Harsco Corp., 356 F.3d 920, 923 (8th Cir.2004); Rouse v. Benson, 193 F.3d 936, 939 (8th Cir.1999); cf. Johnson v. University of Iowa, St. Bd. of Regents, 431 F.3d 325, 328 (8th Cir.2005) ("Summary judgment is still appropriate ... when the disputed facts will not affect the outcome of the suit"); Baucom, 428 F.3d at 766("There is no genuine issue of material fact if the evidence is such that a reasonable jury could not return a verdict for [plaintiff]").

It is the non-moving party's obligation to "go beyond the pleadings and by affidavits, depositions, answers to interrogatories, and admissions on file, designate specific facts showing that there is a genuine issue of material fact." Rouse, 193 F.3d at 939; see Baucom, 428 F.3d at 766 (plaintiff may not rely on "mere allegations"); Hitt, 356 F.3d at 923. "We consider only admissible evidence and disregard portions of various affidavits and depositions that were made without personal knowledge, consist of hearsay, or purport to state legal conclusions as fact." Howard, 363 F.3d at 801. In assessing a motion for summary judgment a court must determine whether a fair-minded trier of fact could reasonably find for the nonmoving party based on the evidence presented. Anderson, 477 U.S. at 248, 106 S.Ct. 2505; Herring v. Canada Life Assurance Co., 207 F.3d 1026, 1030 (8th Cir.2000).

II. FACTUAL BACKGROUND

Dan Glandon was a member of the United States Coast Guard from 1979 until he retired in 2001. He worked with machinery and in engineering in the Coast Guard and took miscellaneous classes at College of the Redwoods, anatomy and physiology. (Pl.App. at 3-4). While he was still in the Coast Guard he received EMS training in California in 1999. (Id. at 4). Toward the end of his career in the Coast Guard, Glandon worked as a paramedic in Eureka, California. (Id.) After his honorable discharge in June 2001, he moved to Iowa to be close to his mother. Glandon took employment with KCHC as an EMT-paramedic. (Id. at 5). He was hired by Mike Sellers, who was Director of Ambulance Services. Sellers reported to CEO Mike Trachta. (Id. at 6). Sellers left the position and Trachta offered it to Glandon. (Id.) Glandon became Director of Ambulance Services in October 2001. Shortly afterward Trachta left KCHC and David Wright, the CFO, took over as interim CEO. (Id.) In May 2002 Chad Wolbers took over as CEO and Wright stepped back to the CFO position. (Id. at 7). Glandon's duties included patient care associated with ambulance services, maintaining equipment, ordering supplies, coordination of the county's EMS teams and volunteer agencies, and training ambulance staff and later hospital staff. (Id. at 6).

During the time period in question Jerlyn Bowers was the Director of Nursing. (Pl.App. at 69-70). Bowers was responsible for patient care issues on hospital floors in the patient rooms, for the equipment and training of nurses on the patient floors, and for the ER and ER staff. She also had supervisory authority over ambulance staff when they were asked to come help on the patient floors. (Id. at 14).

On many occasions during his employment Glandon voiced concerns or made complaints to Wolbers and Bowers about patient care issues through written "occurrence reports," e-mails, or verbally. The content of these is not set out in the record with specificity, however, Glandon gave some examples in his deposition testimony. He complained about nurses in the ER failing to follow protocols and common medical practices (Pl.App. at 14); about nursing staff letting their advanced Cardiac Life Support CPR certifications lapse (id. at 16); and about whether the nursing staff adequately maintained "spinal immobilization" on trauma patients in the emergency room or were familiar with the use of MRL's, C-spine, C-collar and the "long back board" on such patients. (Id. at 12, 76).

Bowers had numerous discussions with Glandon about the issues he raised and complained to Wolbers many times about Glandon. (Pl.App. at 73, 87). Bowers came to dislike Glandon and took his criticisms of the nursing department personally. (Id. at 73, 81). Both met with Wolbers on several occasions to try to work out problems. (Id. at 15). One of the problems they discussed was disagreement concerning air transport of patients. Glandon had arranged that patients being transported with severe trauma would be taken directly to the helicopter landing pad for transport to the nearest appropriate facility instead of going through the KCHC ER first. (Id. at 16). This sometimes involved patients waiting in an ambulance at the hospital until the helicopter arrived. Bowers believed patients should be brought into the ER where a physician could stabilize them while waiting for the helicopter and felt Glandon was making medical judgments which should be made by physicians. (Id. at 77). The nursing staff saw Glandon's reluctance to bring the patients into the ER as an indication he distrusted the care they would receive in the ER from the nurses. (Id. at 16).

Glandon tried on many occasions to arrange to address KCHC's Board of Trustees about the patient care concerns he had been raising. He claims Wolbers kept telling him he would do something about the patient care issues and that Glandon would get to speak to the board, but Wolbers did not keep those promises. (Pl. App. at 19). Glandon viewed Wolbers as having gone back on his word and told him he was "a man without integrity." (Id.) In February 2003 Glandon was able to address the executive committee of the board about his patient care concerns. He did not feel the meeting had a "positive result." (Id. at 19-20). The committee made it clear to Glandon that he should "get over it and move on." (Id. at 20).

On two occasions Glandon made comments to Wolbers to the effect that he was thinking of resigning because he had not been supported. (Pl.App. at 13). Glandon admits Wolbers talked to him about the tone of voice he use in dealing with coworkers, telling him his tone was taken as unfriendly. (Id. at 18). Glandon testified he normally used "a tone of voice that I'm not misunderstood." (Id.)

In March 2003 the nurses met with Wolbers as a group to discuss their complaints about Glandon. (Pl.App. at 62). As the Court...