You are a paralegal and have been contracted by both Memorial hospital and Methodist hospital. The chief executive officers of both institutions want you to do some preliminary research on some ethical and legal issues that have arisen in connection with the treatment of their patients who were involved in the following series of events.

Mr. James was badly injured in a car accident with Mr. Olson, who was not injured. James was brought into the Memorial Hospital in a serious condition. Dr. Swanson operated on him. After the operation the patient experienced paralysis on the left side of his body. Upon learning of the patient's condition, Swanson referred him to Methodist Hospital, where Swanson is a shareholder. Methodist Hospital is well known for its treatment of victims of paralysis.

At Methodist, Mr. James became so despondent over his paralysis that he successfully attempted suicide. Apparently James had told the nurse in charge at Methodist, Ms. Iverson, about his depression. Ms. Iverson was highly sympathetic to James' situation. She told her friend, who is a nurse at another hospital, about James' plight. James committed suicide by taking a large dose of painkillers, which were left near his bed. It is unclear how the painkillers came to be in his room. James did not have any visitors at Memorial and he had his own room. Obviously, he was bed-ridden. Only doctors and nurses were allowed into his room. No painkillers were prescribed for James.

Upon hearing of James' death, Olson collapsed and was taken to Memorial Hospital. Olson was in and out of consciousness as he entered the hospital. The intake person asked him for insurance information. Olson indicated that he didn't have any insurance and then fainted. The intake person instructed the ambulance driver to take the patient to Mercy Hospital because they "handled indigent patients like Olson." Olson died on route to Mercy Hospital. It later turned out that Olson had died of a stroke.

The CEOs have asked you to write a memo, which fully discusses all of the legal and ethical issues that their respective institutions are confronted with. Your memo should be between four and five pages in length (cover and references page do not count toward paper page count).