Question
In 2012, Joan Silva, a registered nurse, and her sister Janet Donaldson, a pharmacist, formed MedExpress, Inc. to package and deliver medications for patients in
In 2012, Joan Silva, a registered nurse, and her sister Janet Donaldson, a pharmacist, formed MedExpress, Inc. to package and deliver medications for patients in Atlantis area nursing homes, rehabilitation facilities and assisted living facilities. Formed to make medication administration more efficient and less prone to error, the company receives lists of patients, their prescriptions, and scheduled administration from patient facilities.
Patients might be prescribed a variety of medications, for example, with some scheduled to be taken daily at breakfast, lunch, dinner, and bedtime, while other patients might be prescribed a mediation every 6 hours for 10 days. MedExpress then packages these ordered medications in small zip-lock baggies with the patient's name and the day and time to be administered; thus if a patient is scheduled to take medicine at 5 different times a day, the facility would receive 5 packages of medication for that patient for the day. MedExpress delivers patient medications as directed by the facility. Some request daily deliveries, while others want deliveries weekly or bi-weekly.
After a slow start, the company grew rapidly. By 2018, MedExpress, Inc. was packaging medications for thousands of patients across the metro-Atlantis area. When COVID hit, many more facilities contracted with MedExpress to package and deliver medicines for their patients. Initially, MedExpress was able to handle the increased demand for its services, but by 2022, the company had difficulty retaining enough drivers to deliver meds across metro-Atlantis to its clients.
In March 2022, MedExpress advertised openings for truck drivers, reviewed resumes, and interviewed several applicants, including Tyger Cole, who grew up in Atlantis. Tyger had served in the Army as a Military Transport Operator (truck driver) and knew the city well after driving for Uber, Lyft, and Door Dash during the pandemic. Even though it wasn't required to drive MedExpress vans, Cole also held a Class A Commercial Drivers' License. He passed the pre-employment drug screening; a thorough background check by MedExpress revealed a clean driving record with no accidents or moving violations.
Satisfied that he could do the job, MedExpress hired Tyger Cole on the condition that he earn a Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act (HIPAA) Certificate, since he would have access to protected patient information. He completed the online HIPAA training to earn the certificate and started working for the company in April 2022.
In his new position, Tyger was required to work Tuesdays through Saturdays from 9 a.m. until 6 p.m., with an hour allowed for lunch. When he arrived at the MedExpress center each morning before 9, his van would already be loaded with pre-packaged medicines for patients at numerous health care and residential assisted living facilities throughout the metro-Atlantis area. Med Express would also give him a route to follow to make the scheduled deliveries for that day.
On August 23, while driving east on I-825 to deliver medicines to several facilities in DeBalk County, Tyger was stopped by a serious 4-car accident that shut down the highway. Trapped between exits for more than 3 hours, Tyger was behind schedule when traffic finally resumed and he continued toward his next delivery to the DeBalk Wellness and Rehabilitation Center on Forest Drive. Distracted by his thoughts as he approached an intersection about a mile from the facility, he failed to see the light turn red. He entered the intersection driving about 45 miles per hour, colliding broadside with Diona Parker's Prius, injuring Diona and causing extensive damage to her car.
Diona Parker has now sued Tyger Cole, as well as MedExpress, Inc., seeking compensation for her injuries and the damage to her car. In her lawsuit, Parker alleges that MedExpress should be vicariously liable under the doctrine of respondeat superior for the injuries its employee, Tyger Cole, caused her.
Use the FIRAC model to fully analyze Parker's claims against both Tyger Cole AND MedExpress, Inc.
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