Thu, Dec 04 2008
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Published August 27, 2008 11:20 pm - Judge sets mediation date for surgeons, MRMC Emergency room call schedule at center of dispute. By Donna Hales Phoenix Staff Writer
Attorneys for two Muskogee surgeons and Muskogee Regional Medical Center were back before a judge Wednesday over an emergency room call schedule. Drs. Tim Robison and Richard Reutlinger have sued the hospital, contending that an MRMC call schedule violates a provision of the hospital’s constitution and bylaws. MRMC says the constitution and bylaws don’t constitute a contract with the physicians. District Judge Mike Norman will resume the hearing Sept. 3. Norman arranged for mediation to begin Sept. 18. Norman phoned MRMC Chief Executive Officer Steve Mahan from the bench Wednesday and arranged for him to try to get together with Robison. Norman asked Mahan to come to the courthouse or agree to try to work out an on-call schedule for general surgery for the first half of September. Robison left the courthouse to meet Mahan. Robison told the judge Mahan wasn’t the problem — Capella corporate tended to overrule Mahan. Mahan said later MRMC will try to provide contract surgeons to fill in until Sept. 15 and Robison and Reutlinger will not be on call until that date. Robison and Reutlinger are scheduled to be out of state much of the first half of September. Dr. Jerry Bouman is to fill in for Robison’s and Reutlinger’s private patients during a time all three are scheduled to be on call at MRMC. Bouman is the only other surgeon in their business and the only other Muskogee surgeon required to be on call, the doctors say. MRMC had scheduled all three surgeons in the Reutlinger and Robison practice to each be on call 24 hours per day seven times in September, including one weekend each. Robison said all three surgeons in the office are more than 50 years old. He agreed with an MRMC attorney that at one time he had completed as many as 14 surgeries per day. Robison said he is 53 years old and can no longer keep that pace and can no longer care for his patients and be on call seven days each month, including a weekend. After being on call for 24 hours straight, he said he may not be in a health condition to safely do surgery on his patients. “Do you think it’s important to the people of Muskogee to get services from the hospital?” Norman asked. “The hospital can go out and hire doctors to do this — they’re shifting their burden on these doctors,” said attorney D.D. Hayes, who represents the doctors. 
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