By Kara Grant

Courtney Stephenson, DO, was once a star fetal surgeon for Atrium Health, the North Carolina-based health system; but after more than 15 years working for Atrium, she was terminated in November 2019. Stephenson -- who is one of just a few surgeons in the U.S. who can perform intrauterine surgery for an often fatal condition called twin-twin syndrome -- is now suing her former employer in federal court for $10 million, alleging that she was retaliated against and, ultimately, fired for her decision to take family medical leave.

According to the complaint, Stephenson became aware that her daughter suffered a relapse of a serious health condition that "required immediate and constant care from her mother" in May of 2019. The girl's surgeon met with Stephenson's supervisors, Robert Higgins, MD, and Ngina Connors, MD, to discuss her decision to take leave under the Family Medical Leave Act (FMLA), the suit states. It then details the pushback and retaliation that Stephenson allegedly faced in the months that followed.

"It was evident that Dr. Stephenson was in the position of having to decide between pleasing her bosses in her role as MFM [maternal-fetal medicine] doctor and fetal surgeon, and providing necessary care for her minor daughter in her role as a single mother," according to the suit.

Despite the opposition, Stephenson's suit notes that her FMLA requests were approved by Atrium's HR department. Throughout her FMLA periods, Stephenson alleges that, when she would come back to the fetal care center to provide care for certain patients, she was often made to stay in the center for the duration of the work day, disregarding the specifications of her FMLA requests. She also claims that she was called into numerous hostile meetings with her supervisors over the course of her FMLA leave, during which she was told that her choice to leave was "unfair" that she was "dumping her responsibilities on her partners."

Prior to taking her leave, Stephenson had never received a complaint regarding her medical judgment or her ability to care for her patients, the suit states. In February 2019 -- less than a year before she was fired -- Atrium boasted about Stephenson's talents and philanthropic spirit on its website.

But during and immediately after her FMLA leave, Stephenson was subjected to two investigations into her clinical care, "which arose from her performance of lifesaving fetal surgeries that resulted in positive outcomes to the babies and mothers," the suit states.

"There are babies all over North Carolina and the Southeast who would not be alive if it had not been for her care," one of Stephenson's attorneys, Cate Edwards, wrote in an email. "When she needed to take a leave of absence to care for her own child, she was retaliated against and ultimately fired. This is not only wrong, but illegal."

Stephenson now works as a fetal care physician for Piedmont Medical Center's Maternal-Fetal Medicine team.

Atrium Health denied Stephenson's claims. "The facts differ significantly from what is described in the lawsuit; however, we believe it is best to allow disputes like this to be resolved through the legal process rather than through public statements. We will reserve additional comments regarding Dr. Stephenson's departure for a more appropriate time and forum," said a statement provided by an Atrium spokesperson.

Neither Atrium nor Edwards would specify what Stephenson was told were the reasons for her termination.

"The reasons we discontinued our relationship with Dr. Stephenson well over a year ago were and are known to her," the hospital system's statement said. "Atrium Health's decision was entirely legal and appropriate and was not in any way related to her FMLA allegations."

Atrium Health has been rapidly expanding in North Carolina, investing billions to acquire facilities such as Wake Forest Baptist Health.

Randolph James, JD, an employment law attorney in North Carolina who is not involved in the case, said that these costly deals leave healthcare systems like Atrium with debts that need to be paid. A unique specialty such as Stephenson's, James pointed out, is an important asset to a healthcare center's cashflow.

"It's really ironic," James said. "These institutions, on the marketing side, promote how much they care for family and care for babies, but in their own application of human resources, they work these doctors really hard."

James noted that, if Stephenson's claims are legitimate and her case is as strong as it appears, they will probably be resolved in a confidential settlement, rather than going to trial. Still, he hopes the case does go to court and is successful so that the ruling can set a precedent for FMLA-related employment law.