Jefferson’s top emergency doc disciplined | Morning Newsletter
And the Pa. Supreme Court sets up a showdown on abortion rights.
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The Morning Newsletter
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It’s Tuesday. We’re making progress! It’ll be another cloudy day, with a high near 41.
Last October, the top physician in Jefferson’s Department of Emergency Medicine skipped a shift to undergo a diagnostic procedure without alerting his staff. While Theodore Christopher has been honored for his work, he also has a history of being unavailable. Our lead story takes a look at his controversial leadership record.
Also, due to a technical error, Monday’s newsletter didn’t link to a story we believe is a must-read. Reporter Samantha Melamed spent a year investigating Philadelphia’s collapsing rowhouses — finding that a surge in residential construction, a culture of impunity, and inadequate oversight are destroying homes across the city. In case you missed it, here are 12 of the most illuminating (and infuriating) takeaways from her investigation.
— Erin Reynolds (morningnewsletter@inquirer.com)
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Theodore Christopher, the top physician in Jefferson’s Department of Emergency Medicine and its longtime chair, was scheduled to work a shift tending to patients and overseeing staff on Oct. 30, 2023. Instead, on that late October day, he was under anesthesia undergoing a diagnostic procedure in another part of the hospital.
His absence raised alarms among staff. Christopher had failed to notify the on-call physician and left subordinates scrambling to find another shift supervisor. Though patients did not experience any lapse in medical care, Christopher’s actions could have jeopardized them if another doctor hadn’t summoned backup.
Jefferson placed Christopher on leave in November, but sources say he was back at work by early December. Christopher has since apologized to his fellow emergency medicine doctors, saying he learned his lesson, but this is not the first time that doctors on his staff have criticized his leadership.
What’s next for this top doc? The Pennsylvania Department of State, which licenses medical doctors, is considering if further discipline is warranted. Read on.
The Pa. Supreme Court stopped short Monday of recognizing abortion access as a right protected by the state’s constitution. But in fractured decision, three of the five justices signaled that they could be open to making that finding in the future.
The debate arose from a challenge to a state law limiting Medicaid funding for abortions.
A coalition of seven state abortion providers had urged the justices to not only overturn that ban but to recognize for the first time a constitutional right for citizens to make their own reproductive choices.
The state high court justices ultimately split on whether they were ready to make the call just yet — deferring the question first to a lower court — but reproductive rights advocates still hailed the ruling as a positive development.
Now, with both the Medicaid funding question and the debate over constitutional protections back in Commonwealth Court, you can expect a heated legal battle over the future of abortion access in Pennsylvania.
What you should know today
The Philly DA’s Office will charge Shane Pryor for his escape from authorities last week. Pryor was captured around 6:30 p.m. Sunday, while U.S. Marshals were conducting surveillance and spotted Pryor boarding a SEPTA bus.
A newly formed faculty group at Penn held a “die in” vigil on campus Monday in recognition of the lives lost in Gaza since Oct. 7. They rolled out a lengthy white scroll with some 6,700 names — just a portion of those killed.
The investigation into Croydon mother Joy Hibbs’ death sat cold for decades, but her family long considered Robert Atkins the prime suspect. This week, he begins trial before a Bucks County judge.
Philly schools’ superintendent Tony B. Watlington Sr. will give his first-ever “State of the Schools” address on Tuesday. Here are three things to expect.
PAFA students are demanding that the school’s president and board of trustees meet them to discuss the elimination of degree programs.
This is the untold story of Jordan Jackson, a 17-year-old who was shot and killed, but recorded by police as a man in his “mid 20s.” Police never updated the media or its public shooting database with Jackson’s correct age or identity, leaving his mother feeling as if her son had been forgotten.
Duplexes are now planned for 4724 Chester Ave. in West Philly — home to the project that became known as the “poop building” due to the unusual tactics of one opponent.
Local community members scrambled to set up a GoFundMe page after coffee house Black ‘n Brew’ announced its closure. But a little more than a week after it was created, organizers shut down the fundraising effort.
For $50, this New Jersey animal shelter will neuter a feral cat named after your ex before releasing it back to its colony.
🧠 Trivia time
This viral TikTok couple, best known for their outfit breakdowns, got their start in Philadelphia.
A) Abbie and Herbert
B) Darcy and Jer
C) Carlo and Sarah
D) Pookie and Jett
Think you know? Check your answer.
What we're...
🎧 Anticipating: Tierra Whack’s new album World Wide Whack is on its way.
🥹 Loving: Therapy dogs are helping kids become better readers at the Free Library.
🍽 Reviewing: According to Craig LaBan, Loch Bar, a new high-end seafood spot on Broad, swings big but misses.
🧩 Unscramble the anagram
Hint: This Queen Village restaurant is named after a 1963 Garnet Mimms song that was popularized by Janis Joplin in 1970.
A CRABBY PATSY
Email us if you know the answer. We’ll select a reader at random to shout out here. Cheers to Shirley Ramsey who correctly guessed Monday’s answer: Wilt Chamberlain.
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