Hendley v. Springhill Memorial Hosp.

• Decision Date: 07 September 1990
• Parties: Sherrea HENDLEY v. SPRINGHILL MEMORIAL HOSPITAL and West Mobile Therapy Associates. 89-494.
• Court: Alabama Supreme Court

Page 547

575 So.2d 547

Sherrea HENDLEY v. SPRINGHILL MEMORIAL HOSPITAL and West Mobile Therapy Associates.

89-494.

Supreme Court of Alabama.

Sept. 7, 1990.

Richard E. Browning of Briskman, Binion & Browning, P.C., Mobile (at time of filing of original brief), and of Sherling, Browning & York, P.C., Mobile (at time of filing of reply brief), for appellant.

Wade B. Perry, Jr. and Steven J. Allen of Johnstone, Adams, Bailey, Gordon & Harris, Mobile, for appellees.

ADAMS, Justice.

Sherrea Hendley appeals from a partial summary judgment holding that, at all pertinent times, defendant Jack Sands was not an agent of either of the movants, but, rather, was an independent contractor. On December 1, 1989, the circuit court heard the arguments and considered the briefs and supporting evidentiary materials filed by the parties. The circuit court granted a partial summary judgment in favor of Springhill Memorial Hospital ("Springhill") and West Mobile Therapy Associates ("West Mobile"). The court's well-reasoned opinion stated, in part:

"... [The court] finds that at all pertinent times, the Defendant Sands was not an agent of either of the Movants, but rather was an independent contractor. Moreover, even if Sands did have an agency relationship with either of the Movants, the sexual assault alleged, by its very nature, was not an act which was fairly incident to the relationship, nor was it in promotion of Sands' duties. Rather, the act alleged was wholly aside from the business of either the hospital or of the therapy group, was not done in promotion of the business of either, and the alleged act, if committed, was done on Sands' own behalf and not pursuant to his duties with either of the Movants. The Court therefore concludes that with respect to the allegations in Plaintiff's First Cause of Action based on a theory of vicarious liability for the acts of the Defendant Jack Sands, that there is no genuine issue of any material fact and that the Movants are therefore entitled to judgment as a matter of law.

"It is thereby ORDERED, ADJUDGED, and DECREED that the Summary Judgment Motion of the Defendants Springhill Memorial Hospital and West Mobile Therapy Associates be and [it] is hereby GRANTED, in part, dismissing all claims against Springhill Memorial Hospital and West Mobile Therapy Associates based on vicarious liability for the acts alleged to have been committed by the Defendant Sands."

We affirm.

Hendley alleged that Sands represented himself as an agent of Springhill and performed an unauthorized vaginal examination on her. Sands was a vendor of "TENS" units through his company, Electro-Med, Inc. TENS units provide pain relief to patients by delivering electrical stimulation through electrodes attached to indicated areas of the body. Whenever a TENS unit was prescribed, Sands would make rounds to establish if the unit was functioning properly by checking the battery strength and modality settings. If a patient indicated that a unit was not providing proper relief, Sands would make the necessary adjustments to the unit or replace the electrodes. In order for a patient to be eligible for a TENS unit treatment, a doctor had to make a recommendation to the physical therapy department. In order for Springhill to provide this service, a contractual agreement was entered between Springhill and West Mobile that gave West Mobile the exclusive right to provide physical therapy services at Springhill. An additional provision in the contract required West Mobile to maintain a listing in the telephone book that read "Physical Therapy Department" of Springhill. On a daily basis, a report of billings generated as a result of physical therapy provided by West Mobile was submitted to Springhill. West Mobile was then paid a flat rate of 40% of the submitted figure. Springhill provided the space for West Mobile in the hospital and on the door was a sign reading "Physical Therapy Department." Sands, as the sole provider of TENS units, billed the hospital on a one-time flat fee each time a patient was given a TENS unit treatment. This charge was then passed on to the patient as part of his or her overall bill.

There was no written employment contract between Sands and Springhill or Sands and West Mobile. No personnel file on Sands existed at either the hospital or at West Mobile's place of business, and while in the hospital Sands usually appeared in a business suit with no form of identification. Whenever a physician prescribed a TENS unit treatment, Sands would bill the hospital directly for service rendered and equipment supplied, at a flat per-use fee of $59.30.

On a normal day, Sands would go into the physical therapy department and check the in-patient board to see who was equipped with or was in need of a unit. Sands's equipment was stored in a file cabinet located in the physical therapy department. Sands testified that he was obligated to have a nurse accompany him into the room of a female patient and to be supervised for the duration of the visit. Sands was to approach the nurse's station and inform the nurses that he was going into the room and would be in need of an escort.

Hendley was admitted to Springhill as an in-patient in January 1988. Because of the pain Hendley was experiencing in her coccyx (tailbone), her physician prescribed a TENS unit treatment. On January 23, 1988, Sands entered Hendley's room to check on the unit, only to discover that the unit was not functioning properly. There is conflicting testimony as to what subsequently transpired. Hendley testified as follows:

"So, he was fixing it, the batteries, whatever, and the next thing I know he asked me if it hurt while I had sex, and I told him sometimes.... He went in the bathroom and washed his hands and then he came back out and he pulled down the covers and he gave me an exam and he said does this hurt? And I said no, not really. And he said does this hurt? And I...