BELLINGHAM, Wash. — A veteran emergency room doctor at Bellingham's PeaceHealth St. Joseph Medical Center was supposedly fired after criticizing his hospital's response to the coronavirus.
As the coronavirus crisis intensified, Dr. Ming Lin released a series of YouTube and social media posts critical of the hospital's response, saying administrators were putting patients and staff at risk.
"The O.R. nurses notified that they are given one surgical mask for the whole day. So they're going from patient to patient with the same mask," he said via YouTube. "That, to me, doesn't make any sense in terms of safety."
Hospital officials called the posts "misinformation and rumors" claiming the doctor was creating "unnecessary fear."
"We are putting forth extraordinary efforts to keep our caregivers and the community safe," said Charles Prosper, PeaceHealth's Northwest chief executive. "In line with CDC guidelines, we continue to take every precaution necessary to ensure the health and well-being of our caregivers and patients – both now and in the future."
Lin said he was fired late last week.
Employment attorney Carrie Coppinger Carter called Lin a "sacrificial lamb" for speaking out during the crisis and that he probably has a good case for wrongful termination.
"It's really going to be hard for an employer to stand up with a straight face and say to a jury that in the face of a pandemic they were okay with firing this guy for saying we didn't have enough protection."
From grocery clerks to warehouse workers, people across the country are increasingly speaking out about safety concerns they're experiencing on the job.
If you feel like you're bring forced to work in an unsafe environment right now, Coppinger Carter suggested you report it to Labor & Industries, the Attorney General's Office and be sure to keep a paper trail.
"You have to take the steps to protect yourself and your family first," said Coppinger Carter. "You have up to three years, in some cases, to pursue those legal claims."
Employers, however, have rights too and any move you make must be a calculated risk.
"You can be 100% right in the positions and actions you take but that doesn't mean an employer isn't going to terminate you," said Coppinger Carter. "It just means you might have a legal claim for that wrongful termination."