Santa Rosa Memorial Hospital v. Superior Court

Petitioner, Santa Rosa Memorial Hospital (the Hospital) seeks a writ of mandate to compel the Sonoma County Superior Court to vacate its order granting the motion of real party in interest, Victoria Leary, to compel answers to 18 questions propounded at the deposition of Vicki Vogler, a nurse epidemiologist and member of the infection control committee at the Hospital. The Hospital contends that the information sought is immune from discovery under Evidence Code section 1157.

The Hospital is a defendant in the court below in a negligence action brought by Leary. The complaint alleges that Leary suffered injuries as the result of an infection which she acquired in the Hospital in 1982. It asserts that the Hospital and a number of fictitiously named defendants negligently treated Leary. It also alleges that the Hospital negligently employed and staffed the Hospital with incapable employees and agents whose carelessness, negligence or lack of ability or training caused Leary’s injury and damage.

The Hospital filed its petition for writ of mandate with this court on June 4, 1984. We summarily denied the petition on September 27, 1984. Thereafter, the Hospital petitioned for…