Chapter 61: Pressured

November 13, 1989, McKinley, Ohio

"How did you respond to Doctor Gibbs?"

"I said something along the lines of having heard that before."

"The reprimand didn't bother you?"

"That afternoon, while giving the alumnus speech at McKinley Medical School, I stated I wore it as a badge of honor."

"Why is that?"

"Because Socrates was a pain in the ass, so was Doctor Martin Luther King Junior, and, frankly, so was Jesus."

"We should take a break," Melody suggested.

It was agreed, and she, I and Mr. Crowe went to his office.

"I think you're giving him what he wants," Mr. Crowe said.

"I don't disagree," I replied. "But I don't think it helps him because if he puts me on the stand in front of a jury, I'm going to testify that she made the false accusation. The fact that she withdrew it after she was caught and dismissed doesn't save her."

"His goal is to show she was treated unfairly and that it was all because of the bad behavior of the doctor during her Third Year Medicine rotation. The point is to maximize the damages against him and show a pattern of bad behavior by the hospital and medical school."

"So, this isn't an attempt to be reinstated?"

"I don't see how," Mr. Crowe said. "She was dismissed specifically for lying in a sworn statement, and she admitted today that she did lie. Even with an apology, there is zero chance she could be reinstated, and no court is going to countenance such a remedy. The only remedies requested in her suit are monetary damages and an admission of guilt by Doctor Mark King."

"Which would cost him any chance at his medical license, at least for some time," I replied.

"I think that's done anyway," Mr. Crowe said. "In my discussions with Arthur Braun, I discerned they have some kind of proof of a sexual relationship. A competent lawyer can draw a straight line from your testimony to a demand for sex in exchange for an improved grade."

"Which is not what I thought I was giving them."

"Don't worry. You haven't said anything I didn't hear from Doctors Gibbs, Casper, Gabriel, Javadi, and Lindsay. All of it leaves Doctor Mark King swinging in the breeze if they have any proof of a sexual relationship, which I believe they do."

"Will the hospital have to pay?"

"That's the usual outcome in a sexual harassment case where there's enough evidence to convince a jury it happened."

A few minutes later, we reconvened in the conference room, and the deposition continued.

"What happened next?" Arthur Braun asked.

"The schedule for medical students was published, and Miss Sandberg was assigned to shifts that did not overlap mine."

"In order to prevent you from teaching her?"

"You'll need to ask Doctor Gabriel for his reasoning," I replied. "I don't know."

"But that was the effect, was it not?"

"It is true that if a medical student is not on the same shift, I would not be able to teach them. That goes for any medical student."

"Did Miss Sandberg approach you about the schedule?"

"She did."

"What was your response?"

"That scheduling was up to the Chief Resident, and I had no input other than being asked which shifts I preferred and if I would be willing to work a schedule to include a day at the Free Clinic and also allow the Surgical service to not assign a Resident to the ED for consults during the day, freeing them for elective surgeries."

"What's the advantage of that?"

"Elective surgeries are one way for the hospital to increase revenue, which is necessary to make up for what amounts to underfunding by Medicare and Medicaid, and to help cover costs for indigent patients."

"Did Miss Sandberg make a request?"

"She did, and I declined to intervene, as I would decline for any student, though I stated that I would accept her as my Fourth Year if Doctor Northrup approved."

"Was the schedule she was referring to the original schedule?"

"I have no first-hand knowledge, as I hadn't looked at the medical student schedule when it was first published. Miss Sandberg said that it had been changed to switch her shifts away from working with me. I do not know if that is the case or not."

"What happened next?" Mr. Braun asked.

"Miss Sandberg acted on my advice and went to see Doctor Northrup, the Chief of Emergency Medicine."

"Did he discuss it with you?"

"Completely off the record," I replied.

"Once again," Melody said, "you'll need to answer."

"What was said?" Mr. Braun inquired.

"He asked about Miss Sandberg's request, and I stated that I felt we had failed as teachers. I also stated that she, like every other student, deserved a chance to succeed and that our job as teachers was to provide her with every opportunity to do so right up to the final day of her rotation."

"How did Doctor Northrup respond?"

"He asked if I thought Doctor Gibbs was wrong in her assessment of Miss Sandberg. I replied that I suspected that Doctor Gibbs was correct, but that didn't change our obligation to teach Miss Sandberg, and we should continue doing so until she showed she was unwilling to learn or incapable of learning."

"Was anything else said?"

"I was asked, directly, and again, off the record, if I was involved with Miss Sandberg in any way. I stated that other than teaching, I was not. I asked about the question, and Doctor Northrup admitted he'd been told that Miss Sandberg had been involved with another doctor, and that was how she had passed a rotation."

"Doctor Mark King?"

"No names were mentioned, nor was the service identified."

"Did Doctor Northrup indicate he believed the report?"

"He said he had no proof, and I replied that I had never once seen her behave in an unprofessional or unethical manner. He asked if anyone had behaved that way towards me, and I replied that other than flirting by nurses and female law enforcement officers, the answer was 'no', and I considered that flirting to be harmless."

"Have you ever had such a relationship?" Mr. Braun asked.

"Objection," Melody said. "That's not a question directly related to Miss Sandberg."

"I think it's important to know if Doctor Loucks has had any inappropriate relationships."

"May I have two minutes to speak to my client?" Melody asked.

"Yes, of course. We're off the record."

Melody and I left and went to Mr. Crowe's office for a private conversation.

"Here's the dilemma," she said. "If you refuse to answer, they'll assume you have and ask every single other deponent about it, and if they develop anything, they'll depose you again, and this time the limits won't apply. If you do answer, you're staying outside the boundaries of the questioning. Normally, I'd advise you to say nothing, but given there is no legal problem with anything you've done, I have to leave it to you."

"Could I agree to answer that single question, with a firm denial, of course, and then refuse to answer further questions?"

"You could, but once you've opened the door, you risk him trying to figure out what it is you don't want to say."

"Yeah, I think we passed that point as soon as you objected at the start of the deposition, not that there was any real option."

"I agree. This is one of those rare cases where you have to decide what's best, as there isn't really a legal question."

"How should we play it?"

"Just answer his question with a firm denial, as you suggested, but don't be overly firm. Hopefully, he'll accept that and move on."

"OK."

We returned to the conference room, and Mr. Braun put us back on the record.

"I'll answer that single out-of-bounds question, Mr. Braun," I said. "I've never once engaged in any inappropriate behavior of any kind at the hospital or with any hospital staff."

"To confirm, you observed no inappropriate behavior by Miss Sandberg?"

"None," I confirmed.

"How did your meeting with Doctor Northrup conclude?"

"He asked what I would do in fifteen years when I was sitting in his chair. I responded that relying solely on what we knew to be true, not what we might suspect, that Miss Sandberg's complaint about unfair treatment shouldn't be dismissed out of hand and that her request to change shifts to work with me ought to be given proper consideration.

"I weighed the factors, including the policy of not allowing students to directly select their teachers, balanced against the fact that I felt I was the only one who would give Miss Sandberg a fair shake. Given I was positive she'd be assigned pure scut for five weeks if she were assigned to anyone else, on balance, it made sense to honor her request."

"How did Doctor Northrup respond?"

"He asked why he should take the advice of a relatively inexperienced doctor, who had just completed the second month of his Internship over that of more experienced doctors. He asked, specifically, what I knew that they didn't. I countered that it wasn't what I knew, but my philosophy that everyone deserves the same respect, which meant doing our best to teach them until such time as they proved they were unwilling or incapable."

"Was Miss Sandberg unwilling or incapable?"

"Not in my opinion."

"What happened then?"

"He said he'd take her request under advisement."

"Did you, at any point, discuss what had happened with any doctors other than your supervisors or the colleague you mentioned earlier, Doctor Javadi?"

"I had a lengthy discussion with Doctor Clarissa Saunders, who has been a close confidante since Freshman year at Taft."

"And your relationship with her?"

"Is what I just said. To answer your implication, you should probably ask Doctor Saunders' girlfriend."

"She's a lesbian?" Mr. Braun asked.

"Yes. She's not 'in the closet', but they also don't advertise."

"What was said between you and Doctor Saunders?"

"Mostly a reiteration of what I've told you, with the observation that I expected Doctor Northrup to turn down Miss Sandberg's request."

"Why did you feel that way?"

"Because, in the end, he couldn't set a precedent of allowing a student to select their Resident. That would make scheduling difficult, if not impossible. Later that same day, Doctor Northrup called me into his office and confirmed my suspicion as to what he'd decide to do."

"What exactly was said?"

"That he'd conferred with other doctors and concluded that they couldn't allow Miss Sandberg to choose her Resident. He did say that he would instruct Doctor Paul Lincoln to treat her fairly and not assign her only scut."

"What was your response?"

"That I would have made a different decision, but it was his call, and as such, I'd abide by it and not make any public statements to the contrary. Unfortunately, you've forced me to violate my word with regard to not discussing my opinion of his decision publicly."

"I'm sure you will understand, Doctor," Mr. Braun said, "that allowing you to refuse to answer because a conversation was 'off the record' or 'unofficial' would provide a simple way to cover up any improper behavior or activity, including conspiracies."

"Not liking something doesn't mean I won't do it, if required," I replied, "so long as it's not unethical or illegal."

"You clash with senior doctors quite often, don't you?"

"I express my opinions forcefully," I replied. "That has, as I noted before, led to being called a 'pain in the ass' and created some conflicts, but I know you know that because of our previous encounters."

"You understand, of course, it's not personal animosity, but a zealous defense of my clients, similar to what your attorney has done for you."

"One more thing I understand but don't like," I replied.

"Mr. Braun, do you have further questions about Miss Sandberg?" Melody prompted.

"I do, Counselor," he replied. "What happened next, Doctor?"

"Another medical student approached me and indicated that Miss Sandberg had requested to swap shifts, and he asked if that was what I wanted. I replied that I was neutral and had to stay neutral and that he had to decide what was in his best interests. He elected not to swap shifts."

"Did you feel he should have?"

"No. He had been assigned to me, and that was, in his estimation, what was best for him. It's not my place to decide. Just as students have to accept their teachers, so, too, teachers have to accept their students."

"Did you have an opportunity to speak to Doctor Paul Lincoln?"

"I did and asked him to give Miss Sandberg a fair shake."

"Did he?"

"You'll have to ask him or Miss Sandberg, as I didn't observe their interactions and, as such, can't comment on them. I know Miss Sandberg complained to Doctor Nora Mertens at the medical school about not receiving enough procedures, but I have no first-hand knowledge of whether that is true or not."

"I'd like to hear your opinion," Mr. Braun said.

"I don't have one," I replied. "I can't form an opinion based on rumor or innuendo, and that's the reason you're talking to me today — I rejected rumor and innuendo and operated solely on facts and events I could observe and evaluate."

"Did Miss Sandberg approach you after that?"

"She did. She stated that she believed everyone except me wanted her to fail. I asked her if she wanted to be a physician more than anything, and she affirmed that she did. I then asked her about what I considered inappropriate relationships with Attendings, and she stated that there were no rules against it and that there had been two separate relationships, but never with a supervisor or even a doctor on the same service. I later discovered that was, very likely, a lie."

"We'll get to that in a moment," Mr. Braun said. "At the time, did you believe her?"

"I did. I also stated that it was my opinion that such relationships ought to be considered ethical violations on both the part of the doctor and the student."

"Did you say that to others?"

"It's more a question of to whom I didn't say it. I think the situation we now find ourselves in speaks volumes about the correctness of my position on the matter."

"What else was said by Miss Sandberg?" Mr. Braun asked.

"That she knew female medical students who had slept with their supervising Resident or Attending, something she claimed not to have done."

"Are you aware of any relationships such as that?"

"Off limits, Counselor," Melody interjected.

Mr. Braun frowned but moved on.

"What did you do next?"

"I spoke with Doctor Nora Mertens and pushed hard for a rule from the medical school to make relationships between students and doctors an ethical violation."

"How was that received?"

"Doctor Mertens was non-committal, and we discussed Miss Sandberg's situation. When asked by Doctor Mertens, I stated that I believed Miss Sandberg was telling the truth about her relationships, but I had nothing to go on except her word against the rumor mill. I expressed the opinion that if Miss Sandberg was being honest, it was possible someone was blackballing her."

"Do you think that was the case?"

"I strongly suspected it was then; I no longer believe that theory is correct."

"Did you propose a course of action after your discussion with Doctor Mertens?"

"I did," I confirmed. "I suggested that Miss Sandberg be assigned to me for the remainder of her rotation without changing my other student's hours. That proposal was shot down by Doctor Northrup. Instead, he proposed Miss Sandberg repeat her trauma Sub-I, and that her grade for both rotations would depend on the grade she received for the repeated rotation. He'd also ask, but not require, that her schedule largely match mine."

"Was there any discussion of your proposed rule change?"

"Yes. Doctor Northrup rejected it out of hand, saying that everyone involved was an adult."

"Did you discuss your position with anyone else?"

"Doctor Gibbs and I had a fairly heated discussion where I defended Miss Sandberg."

"Before or after Doctor Northrup made his decision?"

"Before."

"Did you discuss it with anyone else?"

"Clarissa Saunders."

"What happened when Miss Sandberg was informed of the decision?"

"She said she accepted it but wasn't thrilled."

"Did you extract any commitments from her?"

"I asked her to promise not to be involved with any doctors until after graduation. She agreed."

"And you feel it was appropriate to make such a request?" Mr. Braun asked.

"Given where we're sitting right now, I'd say so."

"What happened next?"

"Nurse Kellie Martin warned me that Miss Sandburg was lying to me and that she was having an affair with an ED doctor."

"Who?"

"I'd prefer not to answer," I replied. "As I have no first-hand knowledge. You should ask Nurse Martin."

"I understand your reluctance, but who did Nurse Martin identify?"

"You do need to answer, Mike," Melody counseled.

"Bill Schmidt," I replied.

"What did you do in response?"

"I discussed what Kellie had said with Doctor Saunders and Doctor Lindsay."

"Shelly Lindsay?"

"Yes. She's my surgical mentor and a friend."

"What advice were you given?"

"Doctor Saunders said to be careful; Doctor Lindsay suggested I record any private interactions with Miss Sandberg."

"Why?"

"Because, according to Doctor Lindsay, Miss Sandberg had used sex to manipulate her supervisors, and she was concerned that Miss Sandberg would try that with me."

"And you recorded an exchange between you and Miss Sandberg?"

"Yes, I did."

"Do you have the tape recording?" Mr. Braun asked.

"I have the original, and Mr. Crowe has a copy."

"I'll provide it to you, Arthur," Mr. Crowe interjected.

"Doctor," Mr. Braun said, "you're required to preserve the original tape."

"Mike," Melody said, "turn the original over to me after this deposition, and I'll hold it for you."

"OK," I agreed.

"What happened next?" Mr. Braun inquired.

"An accusation was made, and I used the tape recording to prove it was categorically false. At that point, I was cleared. Miss Sandberg was suspended, and an investigation was opened. From then until you called me, I had no interaction with Miss Sandberg nor with anyone other than Mr. Crowe, at which point I spoke to Ms. Coates. Other than her, I've spoken to no one about this except Clarissa Saunders."