Lawsuit: Whistleblowers sue St. Luke's Health System

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Two former sterile processing workers at St. Luke's Health System are suing the organization and two of its employees claiming they were fired after highlighting multiple safety violations in procedures to clean and disinfect medical and surgical instruments.

Elizabeth Bell and S.A. Herrera also allege harassment from St. Luke's staff after bringing forward their concerns in 2022 and 2023.

"I'm really proud of Elizabeth and Ms. Herrera for standing up for other people," said attorney Sonal Bhatia. "They are doing it out of love for the public and care for public safety."

Bell, a former sterile processing manager at St. Luke's Hospital of Kansas City, 4401 Wornall Road, claims in the lawsuit, filed Monday in Jackson County court, that she was fired after making several reports of unsafe working conditions and unsterile practices at the hospital.

Last year, Bell provided KMBC 9 Investigates with pictures and video that she claims show bugs in and around the operating rooms and sterile facilities at the hospital. She also provided pictures of rusted instruments that she claims hospital staff refused to remove for use on patients.

Herrera, a former quality and education coordinator for sterile processing, claims she was promoted and demoted within the sterile processing department.

She had concerns similar to Bell's, including understaffing, noncompliance with sterile processing regulations, abuse, retaliation, and discrimination from the operating room staff.

Bell also provided documentation in the lawsuit of a physician who complained about "decreased revenue" due to pre-cleaning of instruments before surgical procedures.

Last year, St. Luke's Health System responded to Bell's concerns denying the hospital would ever compromise proper sterilization to increase any profits.

St. Luke's leaders showed KMBC 9 Investigates and other Kansas City journalists the 14-step process to sterilize and clean instruments on a tour of the hospital's sterile processing facilities.

Leaders, at the time, said the hospital has spent $7.5 million on new equipment since 2021 and opened the new $8 million sterile processing facility in January of 2023.

Tuesday, St. Luke's released this statement about the new lawsuit:

"Since these claims originally surfaced, we have vigorously defended our sterile processing standards. While we will not comment on pending litigation, Saint Luke's sterile processing team adheres to and follows the standards set by the nation's most reputable governing organizations, including the Association of Operating Room Nurses and the Healthcare Sterile Processing Association, the Association of Operating Room Nurses, The Joint Commission (TJC), Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Service (CMS), and Association for the Advancement of Medical Instrumentation (AAMI)."

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