MIAMI, FL — A Miami emergency room doctor on the front lines of the new coronavirus battle told Patch she was “cautiously ecstatic”after learning she won a temporary stay of a judge’s order granting temporary custody of her young daughter to her ex-husband amid concerns of the physician’s day-to-day exposure to the illness.
“I’m just so excited to see my daughter tomorrow and be able to hug her,” Dr. Theresa H. Greene said Tuesday.
Last week she was forced to turn over her young daughter to her ex-husband based on an April 8 order from Miami Judge Bernard S. Shapiro, who said in court documents the decision was “solely related” to the outbreak of the new coronavirus.
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The physician said her 4-year-old daughter fortunately didn’t understand what was happening when she was brought to stay with her father.
“She didn’t think it was necessarily anything necessarily different that a normal handoff but she knew I was upset beforehand,” the doctor confided.
In issuing a stay of that order Tuesday, the 3rd District Court of Appeal agreed to hear the case on an expedited basis.
“While we are beyond grateful for today’s ruling, we know that this matter is far from over. We will continue to work diligently for Dr. Greene, her daughter and all the other first responders and medical professionals,” added Greene’s attorney, Steven Nullman of Nullman Law.
The doctor practices in Miami-Dade County, which is considered to be the epicenter of Florida’s coronavirus outbreak along with nearby Broward and Palm Beach counties. The three counties accounted for some 60 percent of the 21,367 confirmed cases in Florida as of Tuesday.
Court documents said Green tested negative for the new coronavirus on April 8.
The attorney for Eric J. Greene, Dr. Greene’s ex-husband, did not immediately respond to Patch’s request for comment.
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The doctor acknowledged that it’s difficult to tell which patients have COVID-19 so she treats everyone as if they might be suffering from the illness until she learns otherwise.
Dr. Greene shares custody of the child with her former husband. In granting the emergency motion to temporarily modify Dr. Greene’s timesharing arrangements, Judge Shapiro cited the physician’s “significantly heightened” exposure to the virus.
In issuing the temporary child custody order, Judge Shapiro said he did not take the order lightly.
“Given the pandemic in the state of Florida and the recent increase in confirmed COVID-19 cases, the court finds in order to insulate and protect the best interests and health of the minor child, this order must be entered on a temporary basis,” Shapiro wrote.
Nullman said he was disappointed by the judge’s position.
“We believe that the decision sets out a very dangerous precedent that could have a major impact on health care providers around the country who are risking their own lives while fighting to save others,” Nullman said.
Dr. Greene said she fears the possible legal precedent that could be set for other single mothers who work in the health care field if Shapiro’s order is allowed to stand.
“I worry for my colleagues. Everybody is concerned that this could happen to them,” she confided. “We’ve been talking about it for a couple of weeks. I didn’t know that it was going to happen to me.”