LENOX HILL — A longstanding cardiologist at Lenox Hill Hospital says he was wrongfully fired in March after complaining about his supervisor.
Dr. Carlos E. Ruiz, an Upper East Sider who had worked for the hospital since 2006, submitted a complaint to the human resources department in February about his supervisor, Dr. S. Jacob Scheinerman, who Ruiz says went behind his back to talk to a patient's family about a surgery Ruiz performed, according to a lawsuit he filed to the State Supreme Court on Oct. 9.
Ruiz served as the hospital's director of the Division of Structural and Congenital Heart Disease until 2011, when he was promoted to director of Congenital and Structural Heart Disease for North Shore University Health System, which oversees Lenox Hill Hospital. Scheinerman was appointed chairman of the Department of Cardiothoracic Surgery in January.
When Ruiz confronted Scheinerman about his actions, Scheinerman stated that he was the chairman of the department and he "could do whatever he wanted" and that if Ruiz didn't like it he could leave, according to the complaint.
Ruiz immediately reported the incident to HR, and was told he'd receive an investigation report by March 31. But when that date arrived, he was fired without warning and escorted off the property by a security guard, the lawsuit states. There were still two years left in his contract with the hospital.
Scheinerman "allowed his personal excessive ambition, his jealous and animus toward [Ruiz] to obstruct his legal duties and encroach upon the care of [Ruiz's] patients and vengefully hamper [his] medical advancements and career," the lawsuit says.
The hospital also kept two of his personal computers, wiped them of information he needed for speaking engagements and refused to forward his professional email, Ruiz states in the complaint. It also did not pay Ruiz any severance or his bonus from 2014, he said.
Terry Lynam, a spokesman for the North Shore-LIJ Health System called the lawsuit "meritless" and Dr. Ruiz's allegations "false," saying Ruiz was fired "in accordance with the provisions of his agreement with the hospital" and called the lawsuit is "meritless."
There were "certain provisions in [Dr. Ruiz's] contract that he violated," said Lyman, but declined to reveal what the violations were.
He added that Dr. Scheinerman, who has worked with North Shore-LIJ for nine years, has been "an extraordinary clinical leader and surgeon, who is consistently recognized in state reports for his exceptional outcomes."
Scheinerman did not respond to requests for comment. Ruiz and his attorney, Gideon Cashman, declined to comment.
Ruiz is suing Lenox Hill Hospital, the North Short Long Island Jewish Health System, the Lenox Hill Interventional Cardiac and Vascular Services and Dr. Scheinerman for at least $2.5 million in compensatory damages, $7.5 million in punitive damages and $10,000 in civil penalties.
