A dentist recently filed a lawsuit against a California university’s graduate school governing body and one of its residency program directors, claiming he was mistreated and encouraged to give preferential treatment to patients they considered VIPs.
Dr. Jordan W. Smith filed the lawsuit on June 11 in San Bernardino Superior Courts against Loma Linda University Health and Education Consortium, the governing body that manages the school’s graduate medical programs, and Meagan Miller, an oral and maxillofacial surgery residency (OMFS) program director, claiming multiple violations, including retaliation and breach of contract.
Smith alleges that the defendants engaged in wrongful conduct that sabotaged his residency in the OMFS program, according to a press release from Brown, Neri, Smith & Khan, the law firm representing Smith.
In the lawsuit, Smith accuses the university of cultivating a toxic and punitive residency program that has harmed numerous residents and patients. Furthermore, Smith alleges he was subjected to extensive mistreatment.
Citing one example, Smith claimed that attending university physicians and program directors demanded that he treat a VIP patient before a patient more urgently in need of care. He claimed that the satisfaction of the patient deemed important took precedence over another patient’s safety, according to the press release.
When Smith refused to give the VIP preferential treatment, he claims he was retaliated against, obstructed from taking statutorily authorized leave, and was mistreated despite having impeccable performance. Furthermore, Loma Linda allegedly failed to adhere to its own guidelines with respect to Smith, as well as the contract he had with the university, according to the press release.
“Dr. Jordan Smith has always prioritized his professional and ethical obligations to his patients, going above and beyond to provide the best patient care possible," Ryan Abbott, Smith’s counsel, said in the release. “Loma Linda University Health Consortium and its residency program director, conversely, have prioritized their own professional and financial gain over patient care. Because Dr. Smith refused to turn his back on his principles and ethical duties like the defendants here did, they retaliated against him and disregarded their contractual obligations to him, as well as their moral and ethical responsibility to properly train the next generation of doctors. As a result of the defendants' misconduct, Dr. Smith's potentially lucrative career as a doctor has been completely derailed, causing him to lose millions of dollars.”
