Evans v. PHTG6/28/2002
. In this accelerated calendar case, appellant, Carol Evans, appeals from the decision of the Trumbull County Court of Common Pleas, granting appellee, Physicians Hair Transplant Group, Inc., ("PHTG") summary judgment on appellant's claims for wrongful discharge and age discrimination.
. The following facts gave rise to this present matter. Appellant was an employee- at-will for PHTG from January 1998 until July 1999. During this time, Deborah S. Gould, a registered nurse, ("Mrs. Gould") and Mr. Robert Pinti ("Mr. Pinti"), a clinic technician, owned PHTG. Then, in October 1999, Dr. Joseph Ross ("Dr. Ross") became an owner as well.
. On June 17, 1999, appellant allegedly observed Mr. Pinti perform a medical procedure on Mr. Eli Miller ("Mr. Miller") wherein he administered anesthesia, removed tissue, sutured the incision and then treated the area with antibiotics. Appellant reported her suspicions that Mr. Pinti had committed an illegal act, to wit: practicing medicine and/or surgery without a license, to Mrs. Gould. Appellant's employment was subsequently terminated on July 19, 1999. Appellant avers that she was discharged because she reported Mr. Pinti's alleged illegal conduct to Mrs. Gould.
. As a result of these events, on December 3, 1999, appellant filed a complaint in the Trumbull County Court of Common Pleas, alleging two causes of action which are relevant to this appeal. First, appellant claimed that appellee wrongfully discharged her in violation of public policy after she allegedly reported to Mrs. Gould that she had "observed [Mr. Pinti] who was not a physician perform a complex medical procedure on a patient [Mr. Miller]." Appellant also accused appellee of age discrimination in violation of R.C. Chapter 4112.
. On February 5, 2001, appellee filed a motion for summary judgment arguing that appellant's claim for wrongful discharge in violation of public policy failed because she did not comply with the whistle blower statute, R.C. 4113.51, et seq. Further, appellee maintained that appellant could not seek protection of the whistle blower statute because the alleged complex medical procedure never occurred. Rather, appellee claimed that Mr. Pinti administered a "simple pimple" to the patient under the direction of the patient's surgeon, Dr. John J. Garro ("Dr. Garro").
. As for the age discrimination claim, appellee argued that appellant was terminated for non-discriminatory reasons because PHTG was affiliating with University Hospitals of Cleveland and Dr. Joseph Ross was to become an owner of the corporation. As a result of these affiliations, appellant's secretarial position was eliminated and a new position was created. This new position included secretarial duties as well as assisting Dr. Ross in surgery as a technician and processing insurance claims. Further, appellee suggested that appellant did not possess the experience or skills for this new position as she only had limited secretarial skills.
. To support its motion for summary judgment, appellee submitted an affidavit from Dr. Garro and portions of numerous depositions from appellant, Mr. Miller, Dr. and Mrs. Gould, Dr. Ross, Dr. Garro, and Mr. Pinti.
. In turn, on March 2, 2001, appellant filed a response in opposition to appellee's motion for summary judgment maintaining that issues of material fact existed which precluded summary judgment. Specifically, appellant attested that she had witnessed Mr. Pinti, who was only a technician, cleanse the affected area of Mr. Miller's head, inject anesthesia, remove tissue, and suture the incision without a doctor present on the phone or in the building. To support her wrongful discharge c
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