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Robin Nagele Serves on Panel Examining Key Learnings from Summary Suspension Hearings at AHLA's In-House Counsel Program 2021 on June 17


On June 17, 2021, at 2:45 pm ET, Robin Locke Nagele participated in a virtual panel discussion, "Key Learnings from Summary Suspension Hearings," as part of the American Health Lawyers Association's (AHLA’s) Virtual In-House Counsel Program 2021. Ms. Nagele, along with colleagues Heather L. Fields (Shareholder, Reinhart Boerner Van Deuren, S.C.) and Jeffrey H. Frost (Deputy General Counsel, Sutter Health), discussed the unique challenges of summary suspensions, based on a hypothetical drawn from a reported summary suspension decision. The discussion focused, in particular, on:

  • The rigorous standards for imposing summary suspension, and the importance of fair process.  
  • Navigating between the non-punitive culture of safety versus practitioner accountability for patient safety/quality.
  • Maintaining the distinction between employment/contractual rights and medical staff due process.
  • Training medical leadership in evaluating, acting on, and documenting peer review to create a strong, contemporaneous record and avoid post-hoc justification for actions taken.
  • Moving beyond emotion to a clear-eyed analysis of events and standards prior to initiating summary suspension.