TALLAHASSEE - A former Big Bend Hospice employee wants payback after her alleged wrongful termination, according to a complaint filed on April 8 in Leon County Circuit Court.
Plaintiff Candance Ledbetter worked as a floating nurse for the defendant for 17 years until her alleged wrongful termination on January 11, 2021.
Ledbetter says she expressed concern to the hospice center's management throughout 2020 about the defendant's apparent lack of COVID-19 protocols as well as potential misallocation of COVID relief funds, and the increase in hospice patients that was putting an unsafe workload on staff and causing compromised care.
Big Bend allegedly gave Ledbetter an overwhelming workload in retaliation to her concerns and either ignored or denied her requests for either more staff or a raise for the higher workloads.
The defendant is further accused of falsely accusing the plaintiff in an attempt to drive her out of her job after she pointed out that the hospice center had allegedly used its multimillion-dollar pandemic relief loan for landscaping, and new artwork for executive offices. Ledbetter was eventually terminated.
Big Bend is charged with private whistleblower retaliation; Ledbetter demands a jury trial to determine her punitive damages. She is represented by Marie A. Mattox PA of Tallahassee.