Rene v. Mustafa

1

DIANA RENE, Plaintiff, v. TANZIA MUSTAFA, M.D., personally; EJIKE ONUOGU, M.D., personally; TAHIRA N. SIAL, M.D., personally; BRUNSWICK HOSPITAL CENTER, INC., Defendants.

No. 16-CV-4072(JS)(ST)

United States District Court, E.D. New York

March 28, 2024

For Plaintiff: William M. Brooks, Esq., Of Counsel

For Defendant Gregory J. Radomisli, Esq.

Mustafa: Martin Clearwater & Bell LLP

For the Amy E. Bedell, Esq.

Hospital Lewis Johs Avallone Aviles, LLP

MEMORANDUM & ORDER

JOANNA SEYBERT, U.S.D.J

Before the Court in this Section 1983 civil rights action arising out of the detention-for-transport of Plaintiff Diana Rene (“Plaintiff”) at Stony Brook University Medical Center and her subsequent involuntary confinement at Brunswick Hospital Center are two summary judgment motions one brought by Defendant Tanzia Mustafa, M.D. (“Mustafa”) (hereafter, the “Mustafa Motion”) (see ECF No. 116^[1]); and one brought by Defendants Ejike Onuogu, M.D. (“Onuogu”), Tahira N. Sial, M.D. (“Sial”), and Brunswick Hospital Center, Inc. (“Brunswick” or “Hospital”; collectively with Onuogu and Sial, the “Hospital Defendants”) (hereafter, the “Hospital Motion”) (see ECF No. 120^[2]) . For the reasons that follow, the Mustafa Motion is GRANTED, and the Hospital Motion is GRANTED.

[Remainder of page intentionally left blank.]

BACKGROUND

I. Relevant Factual Background^[3]

A. Regarding the July 24, 2015 Stony Brook Visit^[4]

In 2015, Plaintiff suffered from parotitis, a gland disorder that is very painful. (See Third Am. Compl. (“TAC”), ECF No. 70, Preamble.) Indeed, ‘[a]s of July 3rd or 4th, [she] believed there was no end in sight for her pain.” (P-M 56.1 Counter. ¶ 20.) By July 24, 2015, Plaintiff had visited approximately six doctors seeking relief from her symptoms, but to no avail. (Id. ¶ 21.) Thus, on the morning of July 24, 2015, suffering substantial facial pain due to her gland disorder, as well as dizziness and nausea, Plaintiff went to Emergency Department (“ED”) of Stony Brook University Medical Center (“Stony Brook”) seeking treatment. (Id. ¶¶ 22-24.) Among other things, while in the ED, Plaintiff told staff: she did not “know how people live with such pain in the face”; she was not sleeping; her appetite was poor and she did not have an appetite for three weeks; she was not enjoying activities she had previously enjoyed; and, “she worries nonstop and that she feels depressed because she worries that her health issues were not resolving.” (Id. ¶¶ 24, 27-28, 30, 33, 35.) She may have also told the ED doctor and/or staff: she was depressed because treatment for the bad taste in her mouth had been unsuccessful; she had lost six pounds in a one-week span; she had not slept in the past two weeks; she was not socializing with friends; she goes straight to bed when she gets home; and, for the prior three months, she was experiencing crying episodes. (Id. ¶¶ 25, 29, 31-34, 36.) Moreover, the Stony Brook ED doctor documented Plaintiff having “[s]tated that she wants to take her life as a result of [her] symptoms.” (P-H 56.1 Counter. ¶ 41.^[5])

Thereafter, Plaintiff was transferred to Stony Brook's psychiatric emergency room for depression and suicidal ideation.^[6](P-M 56.1 Counter. ¶ 38.) Once there, she initially interfaced with a psychiatric nurse who documented Plaintiff stating: the quality of her life had gone down and she had lost her zest for life; she had thoughts of wanting to leave this earth; she did not want to be a burden to others; she had a history of depression; in the month prior to her July 2015 hospitalization, she wished to be dead; and, she felt unsafe. (Id. ¶¶ 39-43, 48.) This nurse completed the Columbia Suicide Severity Scale, documenting: Plaintiff's thoughts of wishing to be dead occurred two-to-five times a week in the prior month; Plaintiff was having thoughts of dying; Plaintiff's thoughts of wanting to leave the earth occurred two-to-five times a week; and, Plaintiff's rationale for suicide was to end the pain she was experiencing. (Id. ¶¶ 44-47.) Later, a supervised social work intern^[7] reported Plaintiff stating, inter alia: she had not slept in two weeks; she did not feel like engaging in activities she used to enjoy; her symptoms started the previous March; she felt depressed; and, she wanted to leave the earth. (Id. ¶¶ 49-54.)

Thereafter, a Stony Brook psychiatric resident met with Plaintiff; in Plaintiff's chart, he documented Plaintiff reporting: having thoughts of passive suicidal ideation; feeling frustrated and depressed because she was experiencing an ongoing rancid taste in her mouth; not having slept in weeks; not enjoying life; not feeling like answering her home phone; not wanting to socialize with friends; isolating herself; upon coming home from work, going straight to bed, but not being able to sleep; having bad thoughts about past experiences; experiencing poor sleep for approximately three months; having a poor appetite and having lost six pounds in a week; having “crying episodes secondary to hurting her family”; experiencing helpless and hopeless ideations; experiencing occasional thoughts of hurting herself; and, previously having told her primary care provider of thoughts of jumping off a bridge. (Id. ¶¶ 55-69.) The resident also spoke with Plaintiff's husband (“Husband”), who reported that, because of the inability to determine what was causing the metallic taste in Plaintiff's mouth, Plaintiff was anxious, depressed and “down in the dumps”. (Id. ¶¶ 70-71.) Husband also reported financial issues were contributing to Plaintiff feeling this way. (Id. ¶ 71.) The resident also documented: his impression that Plaintiff suffered from “Depression, NOS^[8]” (id. ¶ 72); Plaintiff's “recent or presenting psychiatric symptoms included severe depression, anhedonia, mood lability, severe anxiety and difficulty controlling suicidal thoughts” (id. ¶ 78); Plaintiff had a history of depression (id. ¶ 79); Plaintiff had a number of protective factors suggesting a reduced risk of suicide (id. ¶ 80); and, having weighed Plaintiff's risk factors and protective factors (id. ¶ 81). Afterwards, as recorded in Plaintiff's Stony Brook chart, the resident discussed Plaintiff's case with Mustafa, relaying Plaintiff “was a 51 year old married female with quite a few medical issues ongoing, and that she had presented to the hospital with chest pain” who was very depressed and met all the criteria of major depressive episode with suicidal ideation. (Id. ¶¶ 82-83; see also id. at ¶¶ 84-85.) He sought Mustafa's input regarding Plaintiff's case. (Id. ¶ 83.)

Mustafa consulted Plaintiff's Stony Brook chart and then went with the resident to evaluate Plaintiff and discuss the severity of her symptoms; she spent between 30 and 45 minutes with Plaintiff, at which time Plaintiff was crying. (Id. ¶¶ 88-90, 93.) From her interaction with Plaintiff, Mustafa gathered Plaintiff “was very depressed, had suicidal thoughts of death, and posed a danger to herself unless treated.” (Id. ¶ 91.) Even though Plaintiff denied suicidal ideation at the time, from her mental status exam, Mustafa found Plaintiff to be moderately-to-severely depressed. (Id. ¶ 92.) Mustafa also recorded that Plaintiff's “ongoing medical problems led to poor sleep, poor appetite, weight loss, hopelessness, worthlessness and recent suicidal ideation.” (Id. ¶ 97.) “Based upon the symptoms as reported in the Stony Brook chart, Mustafa concluded that [Plaintiff's] depression had gotten so severe that she was not able to use her coping skills, that she felt hopeless, worthless and helpless; she was missing work; and she was not able to have sex with her husband.” (Id. ¶ 99.)

Later that day, at approximately 8:00 p.m., Mustafa had a second meeting with Plaintiff, which lasted 15-to-20 minutes. (Id. ¶¶ 100-01.) At approximately 10:00 p.m., Mustafa had a third meeting with Plaintiff, which lasted approximately 10 minutes. (Id. ¶¶ 102-03.) Sometime between 10:30 p.m. and 11:00 p.m., Mustafa had a fourth meeting with Plaintiff. (Id. ¶ 104.)

Based upon: (1) having spoken with the nurse, the supervising social worker, social work intern, and the resident (id. ¶ 105); (2) having read Plaintiff's notes from the Stony Brook ED doctor; (3) her view of Plaintiff's Stony Brook chart; and (4) her personal evaluation of Plaintiff, Mustafa concluded Plaintiff posed a moderate or substantial risk of harm to herself. (Id. ¶¶ 105-07.^[9]) This conclusion was based upon Plaintiff's: meeting “all the criteria of a moderate-to-severe depression ongoing for at least three months”; past history of depression; experiencing multiple medical issues simultaneously; “relentlessly suffering and experiencing discomfort and pain”; having verbalized suicidal thoughts and frustration with her unsuccessful medical treatment; and, wanting to take her own life. (Id. ¶ 109.) Mustafa's determination was an exercise of her medical judgment, reached after Mustafa met with Plaintiff and weighed Plaintiff's risk factors and mitigating factors, and was the basis for her authorizing Plaintiff's transport to Brunswick pursuant to N.Y.S. Mental Hygiene Law (“MHL") § 9.37. (Id. ¶¶ 110-11, 117-19; see also P-H 56.1 Counter. ¶ 115.)

B. Regarding the Brunswick Commitment and Hospitalization^[10]

On July 25, 2015, Brunswick accepted the transfer of Plaintiff from Stony Brook's CPEP, which transfer was made pursuant to Mustafa's MHL § 9.37 certification. (P-H 56.1 Counter. ¶¶ 122-23.) “When Plaintiff presented to [Brunswick], she felt defeated and her anxiety level was high." (Id. ¶ 124.) As a transferee, Plaintiff's documentation from Stony Brook was subject to review. (Id. ¶ 128.) Further, a registered nurse “interviewed and assessed Plaintiff before she underwent a psychiatric...