San Francisco-based Dignity Health will pay $570,000 to settle a disability discrimination lawsuit filed by a former employee, according to The Sacramento Bee.
The lawsuit was filed by Alina Sorling, who worked as a food service technician at Dignity's Mercy Medical Center in Redding, Calif., for 10 years when she lost her vision due to a severe illness.
After losing her vision, Ms. Sorling said she left her job at the hospital to complete training to perform certain tasks she would have to do at work. When she asked to return to work in February 2015, hospital officials allegedly refused to meet with the California Department of Rehabilitation to do a workplace accommodation assessment.
Ms. Sorling claims she told her employer certain equipment, such as a talking digital thermometer, could help her perform the same work she had done in the past. The hospital allegedly rejected the suggestions and fired Ms. Sorling in June 2015, according to the report.
Regarding the settlement, Dignity Health sent the following statement to The Sacramento Bee:
"For this particular situation, after months of time and effort, we were not able to provide an accommodation to address Ms. Sorling's needs without comprising her safety and the safety of others," Dignity stated. "This resolution will allow Ms. Sorling to move forward with her life, and we wish her the very best."
Dignity Health merged with Englewood, Colo.-based Catholic Health Initiatives in February to create Chicago-based CommonSpirit Health.
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