REGION
SATURDAY, APRIL 30, 2022
THE OBSERVER — A3
Baker City resident sues hospital, surgeon
Plaintiff claims
post-surgery
infection caused
permanent
disability
By JAYSON JACOBY
Baker City Herald
BAKER CITY — A
Baker City woman has
fi led a lawsuit against Saint
Alphonsus Medical Cen-
ter-Baker City and a former
surgeon seeking up to $10
million in damages for inju-
ries she suff ered due to an
infection following ankle
surgery in the spring of
2020.
Nancy Wilson fi led the
malpractice suit on Friday,
April 22, in Baker County
Circuit Court. The defen-
dants are Saint Alphonsus
and Dr. Eric Sandefur, who
announced in December
2020 that he would “explore
new opportunities in health
care” and would no longer
see patients.
Wilson is represented
by Scott Levin, a Portland
attorney.
Mark Snider, a spokes-
person for the Saint
Alphonsus Health Care
System in Boise, said the
company does not comment
on litigation.
According to the law-
suit, Wilson broke her
right ankle on April 21,
2020, when a wheel broke
on her walker/wheelchair.
She was taken to the emer-
gency room at the Baker
City hospital, where she
was diagnosed with a frac-
tured ankle.
Baker City Herald, File
Nancy Wilson fi led a malpractice suit against Saint Alphonsus Medical Center-Baker City and Dr. Eric Sandefur on Friday, April 22, 2022, in Baker County Circuit Court.
Sandefur performed sur-
gery on Wilson’s ankle
on April 22, 2020, and a
second surgery on May
7, 2020, according to the
lawsuit.
Wilson contends that
Sandefur failed to take
action to deal with her
infected surgical incision
at multiple follow-up visits.
According to the lawsuit,
Wilson’s home nurse, as
well as her husband and
son, told Sandefur that the
incision was not healing
properly.
On July 9, 2020, Sand-
efur, during an exam, noted
that the plate and screws he
placed in Wilson’s ankle
during the surgery were
exposed. He ordered infec-
tion tests, which were pos-
itive, according to the
lawsuit.
On July 16, 2020,
Wilson was referred to
the emergency room at
Saint Alphonsus in Baker
City by her primary care
provider. She was then
taken by ambulance to
Saint Alphonsus Medical
Center in Boise for “emer-
gency repair surgery of the
open and infected surgical
wound,” according to the
lawsuit.
The metal hardware San-
defur had installed was
removed, and Wilson was
in the hospital until
Aug. 7, 2020, according to
the lawsuit.
The infection had
spread to her bones,
resulting in removal of
infected bone that left her
“permanently disabled,”
according to the lawsuit.
“As a result of the non-
healing surgical wound and
subsequent infection, Plain-
tiff was completely bed-
ridden for the next year and
will never again regain her
ability to ambulate nor-
mally,” the lawsuit states.
Wilson is asking for a
jury trial.
According to the lawsuit,
economic damages would
be determined by a jury
at trial, with the amount
“not expected to exceed $2
million.”
Wilson is also seeking
noneconomic damages not
to exceed $8 million.
Another malpractice
lawsuit with Sandefur and
By ERICK PETERSON
Lindsay
East Oregonian
HEPPNER — Morrow County
Board of Commissioners last week
voted to suspend a $627,517 share of
Amazon’s one-time gift payment to
Blue Mountain Community College.
The move came Wednesday,
April 20, after Commissioner
Melissa Lindsay said she wanted
the county to “hold on to those
Blue Mountain Community College
dollars.”
She said BMCC had “transi-
tioned away somewhat from our
workforce development” and she
had felt “uncomfortable.” It was her
preference, she said, to keep that
money until more was known about
where it would be directed. She said
she wanted to ensure that it would
benefi t Morrow County.
According to Lindsay, because
Russell
Doherty
BMCC is not going to fund its part
of the Workforce Training Center in
Boardman, the county itself could
direct the money to the center.
“I did confi rm that those checks
had not been cut yet,” she said.
This being the case, suspending
the payment would be an easier
matter than they would have been
otherwise.
Commissioner Don Russell said
this move by the commissioners
would be an overreach.
“Blue Mountain has a board
of directors that is elected by the
public to oversee their budget,” he
said. “They spend a dollar where
they think it benefi ts the most
people. And now for three county
commissioners to weigh in and say,
‘We don’t like how your elected offi -
cials are running your budget, and
plaint, contend that Saint
Alphonsus should have
known that Sandefur “had
a history of surgical out-
comes that resulted in the
development of infections.”
A $5.2 million lawsuit
fi led in September 2020
accused Sandefur, Saint
Alphonsus-Baker City, and
Veronica Crowder, a physi-
cian assistant who worked
with Sandefur, of negli-
gence in treating 6-year-old
Avery Martin’s fractured
arm in May 2018.
That lawsuit was dis-
missed with prejudice,
meaning the complaint can’t
be refi led, and without any
costs to either side, in 2021,
after the parties agreed to
settle the case, according to
court records.
Echo Fire Dept. receives
grant from Wildhorse
Morrow County commissioners suspend $627K
payment for Blue Mountain Community College
County will direct funds to
Workforce Training Center
in Boardman
Saint Alphonsus-Baker City
as defendants is pending,
with a trial set to start Sept.
6, 2022, in Baker County
Circuit Court.
Mark and Lynne Brown
of Union County fi led the suit
on Feb. 11, 2021, claiming
Mark Brown lost mobility in
his right leg as a result of the
defendants’ negligence in a
total knee replacement sur-
gery that Sandefur performed
on Oct. 16, 2018, at the Baker
City hospital.
The Browns are seeking
up to $26 million in dam-
ages — up to $10 million
in economic damages for
complications after the sur-
gery and up to $16 million
in noneconomic damages.
Both the Browns’ law-
suit, and Wilson’s com-
so we’re going to withhold tax dol-
lars that, probably, rightfully, were
yours,’ I think is wrong.”
He stated an error by Oregon led
to a problem with distribution. The
college, because it is in the taxing
district, should have received an
even greater share of the Amazon
gift, he said.
Lindsay countered Russell by
stating her belief this money should
not be sent to Pendleton.
Following this discussion, there
was a vote to suspend the money
until research could be done. Com-
missioners voted 2-1, with board
Chair Jim Doherty and Lindsay
voting to suspend the money and
Russell voting against.
Doherty said he was heartbroken
over BMCC’s problems. The school
is suff ering low enrollment, cut-
backs and budget shortfalls. The
commissioner said he and his son
are alumni of the college.
He said the topic of the suspen-
sion will be revisited at some point,
following further discussions.
Lindsay, too, said more discus-
sions are scheduled.
By WYATT TEGGINS
East Oregonian
ECHO — The Echo
Rural Fire Protection Dis-
trict has received a $20,000
grant from the Wildhorse
Foundation to repair the fi re
station roof, helping to alle-
viate the $26,000 price tag.
Operating on an annual
budget of $100,000, the dis-
trict already spent $25,000
on a new engine for a truck
in early July 2021.
Then the roof at the sta-
tion began leaking in late
December.
“At fi rst, we thought
it would be an easy fi x,”
Fire Chief Delbert Gehrke
said, “but then insulation
began to fall into the fi re-
house, exposing a hole that
allowed you to see through
the ceiling.”
Gehrke decided to put
an application in with the
Wildhorse Foundation,
despite only a couple of
weeks left in the application
window, hoping for funds
to help alleviate some of the
cost.
To his surprise, the foun-
dation was able to approve
the request and write the
check in a short time.
The Wildhorse Foun-
dation uses 3% of the net
gaming revenue made at the
Wildhorse Resort & Casino
to invest in community
matters.
According to the Wild-
horse Foundation’s website,
thewildhorsefoundation.
com, since the foundation’s
indoctrination in 2001,
the organization has pro-
vided $13 million to local
cultural, educational and
public health endeavors.
In 2019 alone, the Wild-
horse Foundation provided
more than $1.1 million to
127 organizations within
the state.
IMESD hires new director of school improvement
The Observer
PENDLETON — Inter-
Mountain ESD has hired
a new director of school
improvement for the 2022-
2023 school year.
Dave Williams, the
current principal at Sun-
ridge Middle
School in
the Pend-
leton School
District, has
accepted the
job. Wil-
liams has
Williams
worked for
the Pendleton district for
24 years, starting in 1998
as a high school teacher.
He was the assistant prin-
cipal at Pendleton High
School for three years, the
assistant principal at Sun-
ridge Middle School for
six years and has been the
middle school’s principal
since 2015.
Williams said from
coaching to teaching to
working as a building
leader, he has been chal-
lenged and rewarded
during his career. He said
it will be difficult to leave
the Pendleton School Dis-
trict because he has had
the opportunity to create
amazing relationships
for the past 24 years in a
great school district.
“However, I look for-
ward to continuing to learn
and grow professionally and
support education in a dif-
ferent way. I’m super excited
to move into the position of
director of school improve-
ment,” he said.
Dr. Mark Mulvihill,
IMESD superintendent,
said the agency is pleased
to welcome a seasoned
administrator familiar with
the Eastern Oregon region.
“Dave emerged as the
Mobile
Mobile Service
Service
Outstanding
top candidate in a highly
competitive pool. His
extensive school leadership
experience and collabora-
tive style will be assets to
our team,” he said.
Williams will begin his
new position on July 1,
2022.
2022
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