Gomez Trial Attorneys, Patterson Law Group and Admire & Associates filed a lawsuit against the Women’s Center at Sharp Grossmont Hospital on behalf of over 80 women who were secretly recorded while giving birth and receiving treatment and operations for birth complications, miscarriages, hysterectomies and other serious medical procedures.
Sharp Grossmont Hospital executives admitted to installing hidden video cameras in three labor and delivery operating rooms from July 2012 to June 2013 as part of an investigation into a physician they suspected was stealing prescription drugs from operating room drug carts. The cameras began capturing video when someone entered the operating room and continued even after motion stopped in the rooms. Carlisle “Ky”C. Lewis, III, Sharp Healthcare’s Senior Vice President and General Counsel, described the recordings in a court declaration in a medical board proceeding against the physician. “There are images contained within the multitude of images of women undergoing operations of a very personal, private nature, unconscious and in states of exposure depending on the operating being performed.”
Because of the cameras’ positions, they recorded areas well beyond the drug carts, including the operating tables where women were receiving medical procedures.The footage shows women, whose faces were often identifiable, partially robed, with genitals partially or completely exposed, having sensitive communications with their medical professionals.
“We are here to hold Sharp accountable for this serious invasion of privacy of women and their families in what, for many of them, were the most sensitive and vulnerable moments in their lives,” said Allison Goddard, one of the attorneys leading the litigation.
John Gomez, another lead attorney on the matter commented, “In a day and age where videos can be transmitted instantly around the world, Sharp was reckless both in the decision it made to place hidden cameras in the first place, but also in the manner in which these videos were maintained. We look forward to getting answers for the women we represent in this serious matter.”
Women who were treated in the Women’s Center operating rooms at Sharp Grossmont Hospital from July 2012 to June 2013 may still join in the lawsuit. Contact Gomez Trial Attorneys for a free case evaluation.
Gomez Trial Attorneys is a nationally recognized law firm representing plaintiffs only in personal injury, mass tort and class action matters. The firm has recovered over $500 million in verdicts and settlements since it was founded in 2005.