Hospital leader disciplined in scandal
Good Samaritan and its COO under fire for allowing Los Gatos teachers to receive coronavirus vaccines
A top executive at Good Samaritan Hospital in San Jose has been disciplined after the hospital came under fire for giving coveted coronavirus vaccines to Los Gatos teachers.
Hospital spokeswoman Sarah Sherwood confirmed Tuesday that “disciplinary action has been taken” against Chief Operating Officer Gary Purushotham and a further review is underway. Attempts to reach Purushotham on Tuesday afternoon were not successful.
The potential shakeup in the top ranks comes after Santa Clara County reprimanded the hospital, saying it will not receive any more vaccine doses, beyond what it needs to complete the vaccination of people who have already received an initial dose, until it can show that it has a vaccine plan that follows state and county guidelines.
The issue arose last week when the superintendent of the Los Gatos Union School District notified staff they had an opportunity to get vaccinated at Good Samaritan, even as the county said hospitals should prioritize health care workers and the elderly. The hospital administered about 65 doses to district staff. The arrangement also raised concerns because teachers were told to sign up as health care workers despite being educators.
In a statement Tuesday, Good Samaritan CEO Joe DeSchryver said the hospital would submit a plan to the county by the end of the week “that includes stronger checks and balances.”
“While vaccine storage limitations and fluctuating availability have been a challenge, we want to reassure our community we have had only positive intentions throughout the vaccination process,” DeSchryver said. “We regret the mistake we made in our efforts to use all vaccines prior to expiration.”
The error has created frustration and resentment, much of which is being fueled on social media and in text chats. Even if teachers were allowed to get vaccinated, there has been no clear explanation for why the Los Gatos district was selected above others.
“It’s about process and adhering to process,” said Kindra Sullivan, a parent with children in the nearby Union School District, which has a school just blocks from the hospital. “We are all waiting our turn patiently, so when someone goes around this, it just creates anger. It’s not about who is more deserving.”
One teacher in the Los Gatos district who asked not to be identified said he was horrified upon reading the email inviting him to
get vaccinated, telling his wife, “Oh my god, they’re asking me to perjure myself.”
“We were given explicit instructions to do that. That was really fishy and a lot of us felt aggrieved by that,” he said.
Sean Webby, a spokesman for the Santa Clara County District Attorney, would say only that the office was “aware of it.”
Superintendent Paul Johnson has been under immense pressure from a set of very vocal parents in the wealthy, well-connected district to reopen classrooms.
In his initial note to staff, Johnson mentioned a district program to raise money to give meals to frontline workers at Good Samaritan, writing, “They mentioned that our kindness last year was not forgotten and how much they appreciated it.”
In a separate note to parents on Monday, Johnson wrote, “I completely understand concerns about the vaccine rollout, and any characterization I may have made about Good Samaritan returning a good deed was my own personal interpretation. While I apologize for that characterization, I also will continue to advocate for school staff to be a high priority for vaccinations. My job, as superintendent, is to ensure the safety of all our students and staff. This is more urgent as we approach our target for school reopening within the next week or two. That’s why we were so grateful when Good Samaritan Hospital reached out to us with this opportunity.”
Reached by email Tuesday, Johnson declined a phone interview, writing, “As you might imagine, I am extremely busy now with preparing for school reopening, which in light of today’s county metrics is expected to be this coming Monday, February 1. Our board approved the reopening plan in November and we are diligently working to finalize the implementation. I will have a statement as part of this Thursday’s board meeting.”
Jim Fredette, a middle school history teacher in the district, said Tuesday he thought Johnson was deflecting. “If it was an error to offer it, it was an error to receive it,” he said.
Charles Binkley, director of bioethics at the Markkula Center for Applied Ethics at Santa Clara University, said he is not surprised by the frustration.
When such a precious resource is involved, particularly with vulnerable elderly members of a community still struggling to access it.
“The underlying assumption is that everything health care does is to avoid harm and do good,” Binkley said. “When something like this happens, when a trusted system is violated in some way, it violates that public trust.
“This isn’t about doing something nice,” he said, “it’s about following an acceptable, legal and ethical order that’s been established. They key players shouldn’t be confused about that.”