Liability of Supervising Physicians

Finally, the hospital may be vicariously liable for a resident's negligence through the doctrine of respondeat superior if the resident is deemed an employee of the hospital. Whether residents are considered employees or students with respect to the hospital is debatable. The National Labor Relations Board, the Internal Revenue Service, and state courts are at odds over the definition. Although trainees clearly have an educational purpose in their work, courts have frequently ruled that they are hospital employees for purposes of ascertaining vicarious liability.