Michael Reck v. Wexford Health Sources, Inc. ( 2022 )


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  •                               In the
    United States Court of Appeals
    For the Seventh Circuit
    ____________________
    No. 19-2440
    MICHAEL RECK,
    Plaintiff-Appellant,
    v.
    WEXFORD HEALTH SOURCES,
    INC., et al.,
    Defendants-Appellees.
    ____________________
    Appeal from the United States District Court for the
    Southern District of Illinois.
    No. 3:16-cv-01141-RJD — Reona J. Daly, Magistrate Judge.
    ____________________
    ARGUED OCTOBER 28, 2021 — DECIDED FEBRUARY 23, 2022
    ____________________
    Before RIPPLE, HAMILTON, and SCUDDER, Circuit Judges.
    RIPPLE, Circuit Judge. Michael Reck, a prisoner at Menard
    Correctional Center (“Menard”), an institution in the Illinois
    Department of Corrections (“the Department”), filed this
    Section 1983 action against a prison physician (“Dr. Trost”),
    the Health Care Unit Administrator (“Administrator
    Walls”), a prison nurse (“Nurse Smith”), and Wexford
    Health Sources, Inc. (“Wexford”), the entity that provides
    2                                                          No. 19-2440
    medical services to inmates under a contract with the De-
    partment. In his complaint, Mr. Reck alleged that the de-
    fendants had violated the Eighth Amendment through their
    deliberate indifference to his serious medical condition. In
    due course, the defendants moved for summary judgment.
    The district court granted the motion and then entered
    1                                  2
    judgment. Mr. Reck timely appealed. For the reasons set
    forth in this opinion, we affirm the judgment of the district
    court.
    I
    BACKGROUND
    A.
    1.
    We begin with an examination of the general medical
    care arrangement at Menard during the relevant time peri-
    od. With respect to the administration of medical care, this
    institution identifies as a “blended site” because both Wex-
    ford and Illinois Department of Corrections employees serve
    on the medical staff. Wexford employs the physicians and
    nurse practitioners; both Wexford and the Illinois Depart-
    ment of Corrections employ nurses. A prisoner may seek
    medical attention by making his need known to any staff
    1 The district court had jurisdiction under 
    28 U.S.C. § 1331
     and 
    28 U.S.C. § 1343
    . All parties consented to proceed before a magistrate judge. See
    
    28 U.S.C. § 636
    (c)(1).
    2 See 
    28 U.S.C. § 1291
    . Mr. Reck initially appeared pro se, and his appeal
    was set for decision without oral argument under Rule 34. The panel lat-
    er decided to appoint counsel and to set the case for oral argument.
    No. 19-2440                                                          3
    3
    member. However, because Menard is a maximum security
    prison, the inmates’ freedom of movement within the insti-
    tution is limited. Consequently, in seeking medical care, in-
    mates also may submit written requests for medical care;
    these requests are known as “sick calls” or “kites.” There are
    several acceptable ways for an inmate to submit a kite. He
    may drop it into a locked box in each cell house, leave them
    in the cell bars for prison employees to collect, or give it to
    medical staff.
    A nurse collects the kites from the locked boxes daily,
    logs them, and then reviews them. Menard’s policy requires
    that kites be reviewed daily and that a health care profes-
    sional evaluate an inmate within seventy-two hours of a re-
    quest for medical assistance. This timeframe was not always
    achieved. According to the record, there were several rea-
    sons for this lapse: understaffing in the Health Care Unit;
    loss of sick call requests; failure to pick up requests; and
    nurses’ ignoring sick call requests.
    During the relevant period, Menard’s Health Care Unit
    was understaffed. There were days when a physician was
    not available. Inmates were frequently unable to see medical
    staff promptly.
    Dr. Trost’s personal attendance record reveals excessive
    absences. There were days when Dr. Trost did not report to
    work or left early. Dr. Trost himself agreed and testified that
    3 Administrator Walls testified that inmates may contact “any employee,
    doesn’t even have to be a nurse, [and] tell them they have an issue,
    they’ll call over to health care, and they could see them.” R.151-9 at
    103:23–25.
    4                                                            No. 19-2440
    he “can see where [his unscheduled departures] would po-
    tentially contribute to” “creat[ing] additional backlog and
    4
    delay[ing] treatments provided to patients.” He was placed
    on a corrective action plan. Shortly before Mr. Reck’s medi-
    cal troubles began, Dr. Trost became the only physician at
    Menard. The other physician left, and the sole nurse practi-
    tioner took an extended medical leave, not returning until
    after April 2016.
    2.
    We now turn to a rendition of Mr. Reck’s medical diffi-
    culties and his interaction with the medical program at Wex-
    ford.
    In 2015, Mr. Reck developed a “painful perianal abscess
    with recurrent bloody discharge” because of his Crohn’s dis-
    5
    ease, which previously had been in remission. His condition
    caused him considerable pain throughout 2015.
    He submitted sick call kites by leaving them in his cell
    bars for prison employees to pick up when collecting the
    mail. He submitted kites on July 10, July 14, July 19, August
    10, August 18, September 14, September 20, October 16, Oc-
    tober 25, October 31, November 14, 2015, and January 14,
    6
    2016. Medical personnel did not see Mr. Reck in response to
    4 R.151-3 at 75:13–75:21.
    5 R.151-13 at 2.
    6 Details of these sick call requests are set forth in the following text
    when necessary to our analysis. Suffice it to say that Mr. Reck’s fistula
    caused him considerable pain throughout 2015.
    No. 19-2440                                                             5
    those sick call requests. There is, however, no evidence that
    the medical staff received these kites; the record contains on-
    ly the contemporaneous copies that Mr. Reck made.
    Mr. Reck also documented these requests in his journal. He
    testified that he also made numerous oral requests to
    Menard staff members.
    The record shows evidence that medical personnel re-
    ceived a sick call request from Mr. Reck on July 26, 2015, and
    that medical personnel saw Mr. Reck on the following day.
    Specifically, on July 27, 2015, a nurse saw him and noted in
    the log that Mr. Reck would be referred to a physician.
    Mr. Reck did not see a physician, however, until September
    1, 2015. The parties dispute whether this encounter was be-
    7
    cause of the July 26 referral or because of an emergency.
    On September 1, Mr. Reck’s abscess burst. The dis-
    charged blood soaked through his undergarments and his
    shorts to his bed sheets. A prison employee took Mr. Reck to
    the Health Care Unit where Dr. Trost examined him. During
    that examination, Dr. Trost noted that Mr. Reck had an ab-
    7 Administrator Walls blamed the delay on a “computer glitch.” R.153-2
    at 5. Several other medical encounters took place during this period.
    They appear, however, to be related only indirectly to Mr. Reck’s
    Crohn’s disease. On July 27, Mr. Reck was seen by a nonparty social
    worker in his cell (due to a lockdown). Mr. Reck told the social worker
    he would be “‘ok’ until he can get pulled out to be seen.” R.151-1 at 133.
    On the 28th, a nonparty nurse drew his blood. Two days later, a nonpar-
    ty mental health employee observed Mr. Reck’s appearance during
    group therapy. On August 6, 2015, Mr. Reck took a tuberculosis test. On
    August 31, 2015, Mr. Reck told a nonparty social worker that he was “‘al-
    right’ but could be better” and that he needed medical attention. R.151-1
    at 135; see also R.153-2 at 7–8.
    6                                                 No. 19-2440
    normal connection between two hollow spaces—known as a
    “fistula”—on his left buttock. The fistula had been there for
    about a month. Dr. Trost also documented that Mr. Reck
    previously had undergone surgery to remove a fistula.
    Mr. Reck also had taken Humira in 2011 before his Crohn’s
    went into remission.
    Dr. Trost prescribed Levaquin, an antibiotic, and Pentasa,
    an anti-inflammatory. He also ordered a follow-up in one
    month’s time. Mr. Reck further testified that Dr. Trost prom-
    ised to refer him to a G.I. specialist.
    Mr. Reck’s abscess burst again on the following day. He
    was outside when blood began to run down his leg, and a
    correctional officer brought him to the Health Care Unit.
    Mr. Reck told Nurse Smith that the abscess was “leaking
    8
    now.” Nurse Smith noted an alteration in skin integrity but
    did not otherwise examine Mr. Reck; nor did she refer him
    to a physician. Instead, she relied on Dr. Trost’s examination
    from the previous day. She instructed Mr. Reck to keep the
    area clean and dry, and she provided Mr. Reck with gauze
    and bandages. She gave him nothing for the pain.
    Mr. Reck passed out when his abscess burst for a third
    time on September 12, 2015. He was brought to the Health
    Care Unit, where a nonparty nurse tended to him, noted a
    “beefy red” open area measuring one centimeter by one cen-
    9
    timeter, and told him to keep the area clean and dry.
    8 R.151-1 at 6.
    9 R.151-1 at 7.
    No. 19-2440                                                        7
    Two days later, Mr. Reck submitted another sick call re-
    quest to see Dr. Trost for his bloody stool, bursting abscess,
    and severe pain. When Nurse Smith saw him three days lat-
    er, on September 17, 2015, she noted that Mr. Reck com-
    plained of constant bleeding but failed to examine Mr. Reck.
    Mr. Reck told Nurse Smith that he “need[ed] to have surgery
    10
    on this.” She again provided him with gauze.
    Mr. Reck’s abscess burst again on September 20, 2015. He
    suffered severe pain and notified a nonparty correctional of-
    ficer. On September 24, 2015, a nonparty nurse saw him and
    noted that the abscess had “drained” “white stuff” and ob-
    11
    served a boil the size of a nickel. Despite instructions that a
    physician referral is required for draining or for signs of cel-
    lulitis, the nurse did not make a referral. The nurse did not
    note active draining and concluded that it looked “like a
    12
    healed boil.”
    Mr. Reck filed a grievance on September 23, 2015, com-
    plaining of his repeated unanswered medical care requests.
    In her deposition testimony, Administrator Walls noted that
    Mr. Reck had experienced a “lengthy” delay but blamed it
    13
    on a “computer glitch.”             She said that Mr. Reck had been
    14
    “treated as medically deemed necessary.”                  Administra-
    10 
    Id. at 9
    .
    11 
    Id. at 10
    .
    12 
    Id.
    13 R.153-2 at 5; R.151-9 at 184:6–23; 190:8–192:9.
    14 R.153-2 at 5.
    8                                                 No. 19-2440
    tor Walls did not mention Mr. Reck’s sick call requests sub-
    mitted through the bars, nor did she review Menard policies
    or procedures or speak with medical personnel about
    Mr. Reck’s grievances.
    On September 27, 2015, Mr. Reck was scheduled to see a
    doctor through the physician call line, but the nonparty phy-
    sician did not show up.
    Dr. Trost saw Mr. Reck again on October 2, 2015. He did
    not examine Mr. Reck. He noted: “[F]istula persists. Last co-
    15
    lonoscopy 2012. Humira 2011. No improvement.” He re-
    ferred Mr. Reck to a gastrointestinal specialist and requested
    a colonoscopy. He did not make a surgery referral at that
    time. Dr. Trost continued the same course of treatment that
    he had prescribed at the earlier encounter by continuing the
    same antibiotic and the same anti-inflammatory. He further
    authorized a ninety-day supply of ibuprofen.
    On November 2, 2015, Mr. Reck was back in the Health
    Care Unit. He complained of pain and “[c]ont[inual] rectal
    16
    bleeding.” Nurse Smith saw him but did not examine him
    and did not consult a physician. Two days later, a prison
    employee brought Mr. Reck to the Health Care Unit again
    17
    for “[s]ubstantial bleeding.” Dr. Trost prescribed a third
    round of antibiotics; Mr. Reck also received disposable dia-
    pers.
    15 R.151-1 at 12 (emphasis added).
    16 
    Id. at 15
    .
    17 R.151-10 at 6.
    No. 19-2440                                                 9
    On November 6, 2015, Mr. Reck underwent a colonosco-
    py. Ten days later, he had his two-year physical exam with a
    nonparty physician. Mr. Reck told the doctor about the
    bleeding from his buttock and his pain, which he described
    as an 8 on a scale of 1 to 10.
    Mr. Reck complained of pain to a nonparty nurse on No-
    vember 16, 2015, and on November 24, 2015, Mr. Reck saw a
    nonparty medical employee for a colonoscopy follow-up.
    Three biopsies had been done; one revealed “focal active co-
    litis” in the rectum, which is “consistent with focal mildly
    18
    active Crohn’s disease.” The report described the colonos-
    19
    copy results as “grossly normal.”
    Mr. Reck saw the gastrointestinal specialist on December
    24, 2015, the first available appointment. This physician con-
    firmed that Mr. Reck had Crohn’s disease and a rectal fistu-
    la. He recommended that Mr. Reck receive Humira, to which
    Mr. Reck had responded favorably in 2011 (the last time his
    Crohn’s was active). The specialist also recommended that
    Mr. Reck be referred to a surgeon. Dr. Trost followed up by
    recommending that Mr. Reck be referred to surgery, and the
    consultation was approved by Wexford after collegial re-
    view on January 8, 2016. His Humira injections were ap-
    proved on January 10, 2016.
    Mr. Reck was scheduled for a visit on the physician call
    line on January 11, 2016, but no physician was present. He
    was rescheduled for January 17 to renew his medication, but
    18 R.151-1 at 40.
    19 
    Id. at 33
    .
    10                                                No. 19-2440
    the line ran out of time, and he was not seen on that date ei-
    ther.
    The surgery consult occurred on January 28, 2016. The
    surgeon noted: “The patient is a known case of Crohn’s dis-
    ease for over 10 years … . The patient states that he has had
    perianal abscesses and fistulae in the past, and has had vari-
    ous surgical procedures including seton placement, fistulot-
    20
    omy, fistula plug, and anorectal flap in the past.” A rectal
    examination revealed “irregularity and scarring within the
    21
    anal canal.” The surgeon concluded that Mr. Reck needed
    an examination under anesthesia with a possible stitch
    placed and possible cavity drainage. Dr. Trost referred
    Mr. Reck to surgery on February 2, 2016. Mr. Reck under-
    went surgery on February 9, 2016. The procedure was suc-
    cessful.
    B.
    Mr. Reck filed his Section 1983 complaint on October 17,
    2016. He alleged that Wexford, Dr. Trost, Nurse Smith, an
    Unknown Medical Director, and three other individuals had
    been deliberately indifferent to his serious medical needs.
    The district court appointed counsel for Mr. Reck and al-
    lowed him to amend his complaint, but limited the com-
    plaint to the following counts:
    Count 1–Eighth Amendment deliberate indif-
    ference claim against Wexford, Walls, and
    20 
    Id. at 126
    .
    21 
    Id. at 129
    .
    No. 19-2440                                                               11
    Trost for implementing, monitoring, and over-
    seeing an ineffective sick call system;
    Count 2–Eighth Amendment deliberate indif-
    ference claim against Wexford, Walls, and
    Trost for understaffing and failing to fill neces-
    sary positions within the prison medical sys-
    tem;
    Count 4–Eighth Amendment deliberate indif-
    ference claim against Wexford, Trost, and
    Smith for failure to place plaintiff in the chron-
    ic care clinic and on an individualized treat-
    ment plan;
    Count 5–Eighth Amendment deliberate indif-
    ference claim against Dr. Trost for delaying his
    referral of [Mr. Reck] to a GI specialist despite
    22
    having diagnosed the need for such referral[.]
    Dr. Hellerstein, the expert Mr. Reck retained for the liti-
    gation, testified in his deposition that Dr. Trost’s care was
    reasonable until October 2, 2015. On that date, his care be-
    came inadequate. “Dr. Trost should have examined Mr. Reck
    to determine the severity and urgency of his abscess/fistula
    before starting yet another round of the same antibiotic
    23
    which had previously failed to resolve these problems.” In
    Dr. Hellerstein’s view, “[i]t should have been apparent to
    Dr. Trost that conservative treatment for Mr. Reck’s ab-
    22 R.112 at 7–8. Certain individuals named in the earlier iterations of the
    complaint were dismissed from the litigation.
    23 R.151-13 at 5.
    12                                               No. 19-2440
    scess/fistula had failed, would continue to fail, and that he
    24
    needed surgical intervention.” Dr. Hellerstein also testified
    that Nurse Smith’s treatment of Mr. Reck, including her re-
    peated failure to examine him, fell below the standard of
    care. He testified that the decisions regarding Mr. Reck’s
    care should not have been made by a registered nurse “and
    required prompt consultation with a provider, or an urgent
    25
    referral.”
    Wexford’s expert, Dr. Gage, testified to the contrary.
    Dr. Gage testified that both Dr. Trost’s and Nurse Smith’s
    treatments were reasonable. In her view, Dr. Trost’s con-
    servative treatment seemed to have worked because
    Mr. Reck was improving by late December 2015. She be-
    lieved the fistula healed naturally. Nurse Smith also was
    reasonable, in Dr. Gage’s view. The symptoms Mr. Reck pre-
    sented to Nurse Smith were the natural healing course of a
    fistula, and thus there was no need for Nurse Smith to exam-
    ine Mr. Reck.
    The district court granted summary judgment for the de-
    fendants. It concluded that Mr. Reck had a serious medical
    condition but that no defendant had been deliberately indif-
    ferent in addressing that condition. With respect to
    Mr. Reck’s medical care requests from July and August 2015,
    the court determined that there was no evidence that Ad-
    ministrator Walls or Dr. Trost were aware of those requests.
    In the court’s view, the record contained no evidence that
    24 
    Id.
    25 
    Id.
    No. 19-2440                                                13
    the medical staff had received Mr. Reck’s sick call requests.
    Turning to the understaffing situation at Menard, the court
    found no evidence that the situation had harmed Mr. Reck
    or that Dr. Trost or Administrator Walls could have hired
    additional medical workers. Evaluating Dr. Trost’s care of
    Mr. Reck, the court could find no evidence that Dr. Trost’s
    absences or his failure to repeatedly examine Mr. Reck or to
    make an earlier referral to a GI specialist had had an adverse
    effect on Mr. Reck. Likewise, the court could ascertain no
    harm from Nurse Smith’s failure to examine Mr. Reck. Be-
    cause no Wexford employee was held to have violated the
    Constitution, Wexford itself could not be liable.
    Mr. Reck timely appealed and initially appeared pro se;
    we set his appeal for decision under Rule 34. The panel de-
    cided, however, to appoint counsel and to set the case for
    oral argument.
    II
    DISCUSSION
    Mr. Reck makes three discrete arguments. First, he says
    that Dr. Trost and Nurse Smith exhibited deliberate indiffer-
    ence in their treatment of him. Second, he maintains that
    Administrator Walls and Wexford operated an unconstitu-
    tionally ineffective sick call system. Finally, he posits that
    Administrator Walls, Dr. Trost, and Wexford were responsi-
    ble for unconstitutional understaffing of the Health Care
    Unit. We will address each in turn.
    A.
    We first turn to Mr. Reck’s case against Dr. Trost. In es-
    sence, Mr. Reck submits that Dr. Trost was deliberately in-
    different when he persisted in pursuing a course of treat-
    14                                                         No. 19-2440
    ment known to be ineffective and in failing to refer Mr. Reck
    26
    to a specialist and a surgeon more promptly. The principles
    that must guide our evaluation of Mr. Reck’s contentions are
    well-established in our case law. A prison official violates
    the Eighth Amendment by acting with subjective “deliberate
    indifference” to an inmate’s “objectively serious” medical
    27
    condition. Sherrod v. Lingle, 
    223 F.3d 605
    , 610 (7th Cir. 2000).
    Deliberate indifference requires something more than negli-
    gence or even medical malpractice; “[m]edical malpractice
    does not become a constitutional violation merely because
    the victim is a prisoner.” Estelle v. Gamble, 
    429 U.S. 97
    , 106
    (1976). “[S]omething akin to recklessness” is needed. Arnett
    v. Webster, 
    658 F.3d 742
    , 751 (7th Cir. 2011).
    Doggedly persisting in an ineffective treatment can estab-
    lish deliberate indifference. In Greeno v. Daley, 
    414 F.3d 645
    ,
    654–55 (7th Cir. 2005), we reversed a grant of summary
    judgment where the defendants repeatedly persisted in of-
    fering weak medication despite the inmate’s protests that the
    medicine was not working. Explaining Greeno, we have un-
    derscored that “when a doctor is aware of the need to under-
    take a specific task and fails to do so, the case for deliberate
    26 Dr. Trost claims that Mr. Reck casts his argument in a manner that
    exceeds the bounds of the order granting leave to file a second amended
    complaint. Dr. Trost waived this argument by failing to object at the
    summary judgment stage. “[A]rguments not raised to the district court
    are waived on appeal.” Puffer v. Allstate Ins. Co., 
    675 F.3d 709
    , 718 (7th
    Cir. 2012).
    27 No one disputes that Mr. Reck’s Crohn’s disease and anal fistula con-
    stituted a serious medical need. See Trost & Wexford Br. 25; Smith &
    Walls Br. 16 (arguing only that they were not deliberately indifferent).
    No. 19-2440                                                 15
    indifference is particularly strong.” Goodloe v. Sood, 
    947 F.3d 1026
    , 1031 (7th Cir. 2020).
    We also must consider the patient’s pain. “A delay in
    treating non-life-threatening but painful conditions may
    constitute deliberate indifference if the delay exacerbated the
    injury or unnecessarily prolonged an inmate’s pain.” Arnett,
    
    658 F.3d at 753
    . Whether delay rises to the level of deliberate
    indifference depends on how serious the condition is and the
    ease of treatment. Compare Goodloe, 947 F.3d at 1031–32
    (holding that a three-month delay in referring an inmate to
    an outside specialist could establish deliberate indifference
    where the inmate was in substantial pain), with Gutierrez v.
    Peters, 
    111 F.3d 1364
    , 1374 (7th Cir. 1997) (affirming dismis-
    sal where inmate waited six days to see a doctor for an in-
    fected cyst). But “[e]vidence that the defendant responded
    reasonably to the risk, even if he was ultimately unsuccessful
    in preventing the harm, negates an assertion of deliberate
    indifference.” Rasho v. Jeffreys, 
    22 F.4th 703
    , 710 (7th Cir.
    2022).
    Mr. Reck asks us to consider that he first complained of
    his worsening conditions due to the abscess in July of 2015.
    Despite his efforts, he did not see Dr. Trost until September
    1, 2015, about eight weeks after his initial complaint. By that
    time, the abscess had burst. Although Dr. Trost told
    Mr. Reck that he would refer him to a gastrointestinal spe-
    cialist, he did not make the referral until October 2. Mean-
    while the abscess continued to burst open and caused
    Mr. Reck considerable pain and restricted significantly his
    daily movements.
    On October 2, Dr. Trost made a referral to a gastrointes-
    tinal specialist. This decision, Mr. Reck submits, was not in
    16                                                        No. 19-2440
    accord with the established standard of care. Relying princi-
    pally on the report of his expert, Dr. Hellerstein, Mr. Reck
    maintains that, at his appointment with Dr. Trost on October
    1, it was clear that the previously prescribed conservative
    regime of antibiotics had been ineffectual and that his condi-
    tion, including his persistent pain, required a referral to a
    specialist and a surgeon. Continuing minimal, ineffective
    medical intervention, he submits, does not fulfill the institu-
    tion’s responsibilities. He points out that he returned to the
    clinic frequently in search of assistance to alleviate the condi-
    tion and the accompanying pain, but that no effort was
    made to alter his medication, even though his records noted
    that he had responded well to the biological Humira.
    Dr. Trost takes a different view of the matter. In his view,
    the record reveals a steady and appropriate management of
    Mr. Reck’s condition within the limitations imposed by the
    prison system’s review procedures. He notes that, in his first
    encounter with Mr. Reck on September 1, he treated his pa-
    tient with an anti-inflammatory (Pentasa) and an antibiotic
    (Levaquin). He also scheduled a one-month follow-up. He
    denies making any sort of promise of referral to a specialist
    28
    on that occasion.
    Mr. Reck’s own expert admits that Dr. Trost’s course of
    treatment was reasonable prior to October 2, 2015. On Octo-
    28 Dr. Trost’s testimony in this regard differs from Mr. Reck’s version,
    but we do not believe that whether Dr. Trost promised a surgical referral
    at the September meeting creates a genuine issue of triable fact. What
    Dr. Trost promised is not the appropriate focus in evaluating Mr. Reck’s
    contention. Rather, we must focus on what kind of care Dr. Trost actually
    gave during the relevant period.
    No. 19-2440                                                               17
    ber 2, Dr. Trost determined that Mr. Reck’s condition had
    not improved. He initiated the necessary process to arrange
    a colonoscopy. That request was approved on October 8, and
    this procedure was performed on November 6. After the Oc-
    tober 2 encounter, Dr. Trost also initiated the process to se-
    cure a consultation with a gastroenterologist. He presented
    Mr. Reck’s case to a review board on October 29. The Board
    approved the consultation on November 4, and an appoint-
    ment with the specialist was made for December 24, the first
    available appointment. The gastroenterologist recommended
    a referral to a general surgeon. That referral was approved
    and made in early January. A surgeon examined Mr. Reck
    on January 28, and the recommended procedure was carried
    out on February 9. No medical witness said that a fistula or
    an abscess was discovered during that procedure.
    The main point of disagreement between the medical ex-
    perts is whether Dr. Trost should have referred Mr. Reck di-
    rectly to a surgeon on October 2 when he realized that his
    initial conservative treatment with antibiotics had been inef-
    29
    fectual. We therefore must examine carefully Dr. Trost’s
    treatment decision in light of the deliberate-indifference
    principles we have articulated. Delay, especially when it im-
    plicates a worsening of the patient’s condition or prolonged
    and unnecessary pain can constitute, under some circum-
    stances, a violation of the Eighth Amendment. Here, Dr. Hel-
    lerstein opined that he would have made the surgical refer-
    29 Dr. Hellerstein testified that Dr. Trost’s failure on October 2 to order a
    surgery consult fell below the standard of care. R.151-13 at 8 (“When
    Dr. Trost saw Mr. Reck on October 2, it was apparent that Mr. Reck had
    failed conservative treatment.”).
    18                                                 No. 19-2440
    ral on that date, but, notably, he could point to no harm to
    Mr. Reck as a result of Dr. Trost’s decision. Dr. Gage testified
    that she would have decided upon the same progression of
    treatment as Dr. Trost. No doubt, we must consider the per-
    sistence of pain during the last quarter of the year, but, as
    Dr. Gage testified, the countervailing pain of surgery must
    be weighed by a physician in determining a course of treat-
    ment.
    The record reveals no support for an Eighth Amendment
    violation. It shows, at most, a disagreement among physi-
    cians which does, not, without more, establish the necessary
    reckless disregard for patient harm and pain required for a
    constitutional violation. Beginning on October 2, Dr. Trost
    took the steps necessary to obtain approval of the review
    board to secure Mr. Reck further treatment. The necessity of
    the colonoscopy and the consultation with a gastroenterolo-
    gist may be debatable among physicians, but these steps
    hardly demonstrate a reckless disregard for Mr. Reck’s
    well-being. We do not see here any indication that Dr. Trost
    ignored the gravity of Mr. Reck’s condition or
    “slow-walked” his treatment plan.
    Nor can we say that Dr. Trost’s pharmaceutical manage-
    ment of Mr. Reck’s condition while awaiting surgery consti-
    tuted reckless disregard for Mr. Reck’s medical well-being.
    After the initial pharmaceutical intervention failed during
    September, Dr. Trost prescribed on October 2 a fourteen-day
    regimen of Levaquin and Ibuprofen, 800 mg three times a
    day as needed. There is no evidence in this record that
    would allow a reasonable jury to conclude that Dr. Trost act-
    ed in a reckless manner in prescribing medications while
    awaiting consultations with specialists.
    No. 19-2440                                                            19
    The district court properly concluded that Dr. Trost’s
    course of treatment of Mr. Reck’s medical condition will not
    support an Eighth Amendment claim.
    B.
    We turn now to Mr. Reck’s submission that Nurse Smith
    violated the Eighth Amendment by acting with deliberate
    30
    indifference in her medical encounters with Mr. Reck.
    The same basic principles that governed Mr. Reck’s claim
    against Dr. Trost apply to this claim. We have noted, howev-
    er, that it is important to take into account the role that the
    nurse plays in the care of a patient. As a general matter, a
    nurse can, and indeed must, defer to a treating physician’s
    instructions. See Rice ex rel. Rice v. Corr. Med. Servs., 
    675 F.3d 650
    , 682 (7th Cir. 2012); see also McCann v. Ogle Cnty., 
    909 F.3d 881
    , 887 (7th Cir. 2018). However, that deference cannot
    be “blind or unthinking.” Berry v. Peterman, 
    604 F.3d 435
    , 443
    30 We note that Mr. Reck has altered his argument on appeal. In his
    complaint and at summary judgment, he contended that Nurse Smith
    had acted with deliberate indifference by failing to place Mr. Reck in the
    chronic care clinic and on an individualized treatment plan. Now, he
    argues that Nurse Smith acted with deliberate indifference by failing to
    examine him or by failing to refer him to a physician. See Appellant’s Br.
    48.
    Arguments not raised in the district court are waived. Puffer,
    
    675 F.3d at 718
    . But Nurse Smith does not raise the waiver issue in her
    appeal brief, and a waiver argument can be waived. United States v. Mor-
    gan, 
    384 F.3d 439
    , 443 (7th Cir. 2004); United States v. Adigun, 
    703 F.3d 1014
    , 1022 (7th Cir. 2012) (“An opposing party can ‘waive waiver’ if it
    fails to assert the preclusive effect of the waiver before the appellate
    court.”).
    20                                                          No. 19-2440
    31
    (7th Cir. 2010). Under some circumstances when a nurse is
    aware of an inmate’s pain and the ineffectiveness of the
    medications, a delay in advising the attending physician or
    in initiating treatment may support a claim of deliberate in-
    difference. 
    Id.
     “Nurses, like physicians, may thus be held lia-
    ble for deliberate indifference where they knowingly disre-
    gard a risk to an inmate’s health.” Perez v. Fenoglio, 
    792 F.3d 768
    , 779 (7th Cir. 2015) (citation omitted).
    The district court correctly concluded that a reasonable
    jury could not find that Nurse Smith was deliberately indif-
    ferent to Mr. Reck’s medical condition. She treated Mr. Reck
    on two occasions during September 2015, on the 2nd and the
    17th, before he was seen again by Dr. Trost on October 2.
    During both encounters, she neither examined Mr. Reck nor
    consulted a physician. Although the two expert witnesses
    disagreed as to whether Nurse Smith’s care was profession-
    ally appropriate, there is no support for a finding that her
    approach was deliberately indifferent.
    31 In Berry, we reversed a grant of summary judgment where the nurse
    responded to the inmate’s complaints of dental pain and ineffective med-
    ication for six weeks between the last time the doctor saw the inmate and
    the inmate being transferred to a new facility. Berry v. Peterman, 
    604 F.3d 435
    , 443 (7th Cir. 2010). That six-week period was a “substantial passage
    of time” that could allow a jury to “conclude that [the nurse] acted inde-
    pendently rather than on [the doctor’s] instructions and was therefore
    personally responsible for delaying” the inmate’s treatment. 
    Id.
     In brief,
    nurses “have an independent duty to ensure that inmates receive consti-
    tutionally adequate care.” Perez v. Fenoglio, 
    792 F.3d 768
    , 779 (7th Cir.
    2015).
    No. 19-2440                                                         21
    Mr. Reck’s expert, Dr. Hellerstein, stated in his report
    that, for a patient suffering from the same symptoms as
    32
    Mr. Reck was suffering in 2015, the “[m]anagement deci-
    sion making” is “beyond the scope of a Registered Nurse,
    and required prompt consultation with a provider, or an ur-
    33
    gent referral.” In Dr. Hellerstein’s view, requiring Mr. Reck
    to wait two-and-a-half weeks for an appointment with a
    34
    physician fell “below the standard of care.” This testimony,
    if accepted by a trier of fact, might support a determination
    that Nurse Smith was negligent, but it cannot support a con-
    clusion that she was deliberately indifferent. Her first clinical
    encounter with Mr. Reck was immediately after his visit
    with Dr. Trost. At that visit, Dr. Trost had set in place a par-
    ticular treatment plan for Mr. Reck’s future care, including
    the administration of an anti-inflammatory and an antibiotic.
    Adhering to Dr. Trost’s patient plan while ensuring that
    Mr. Reck had the necessary bandages to address the dis-
    charge hardly amounts to deliberate indifference. In her sec-
    ond clinical encounter with Mr. Reck later in the month, she
    was confronted with Mr. Reck’s complaints that his fistula
    had burst several times, causing “blood [to run] down his
    legs,” and causing him “extreme” and “debilitating” pain—
    pain so extreme that he “could not sit down,” pain “so in-
    32 I.e., “a patient with Crohn’s disease[,] … recurrent drainage[,] and
    increasing pain making walking and sitting extremely painful despite a
    recent course of antibiotics.” R.151-13 at 5.
    33 
    Id.
    34 
    Id.
    22                                                     No. 19-2440
    35
    tense that [he] passed out.” In response to these com-
    plaints, Nurse Smith continued to adhere to Dr. Trost’s
    treatment plan and provided him with gauze and band-aids
    to alleviate his immediate issues. Simply adhering to the
    medication regime prescribed by Dr. Trost and ensuring that
    Mr. Reck had adequate supplies of medication and bandages
    may not have been the optimal course to follow in light of
    Mr. Reck’s complaints of pain, but, because her deference to
    Dr. Trost was not blind or unthinking, her conduct does not
    36
    exhibit deliberate indifference.
    As in the case of Dr. Trost, our task here is not to deter-
    mine whether Nurse Smith acted consistently with the high-
    est standards of the nursing profession or even whether her
    conduct might be deemed negligent. Our sole task is to de-
    termine whether a reasonable finder of fact could determine
    that she was deliberately indifferent. The district court cor-
    rectly determined that no such finding reasonably could be
    made on this record.
    C.
    Administrator Walls was the Health Care Unit Adminis-
    trator. She is a nurse and was, during the relevant time peri-
    od, an employee of the Illinois Department of Corrections.
    Where the medical director would oversee the inmate care,
    she handled the policy and administration of the Health
    Care Unit. She also monitored Wexford’s compliance with
    35 R.153-2 at 3–4, 7–8.
    36 We note that Mr. Reck was scheduled to see Dr. Trost shortly after
    this encounter, one month after the September 1 visit.
    No. 19-2440                                                     23
    the contract. She oversaw Department medical employees,
    but she “did not personally deliver any medical care” or
    “have any administrative authority over any Wexford em-
    37
    ployees.”        She also lacked “authority to hire, discipline, or
    38
    terminate” Department or Wexford employees. She served,
    along with Dr. Trost, on the Quality Improvement Commit-
    tee.
    Mr. Reck submits that Administrator Walls acted with
    deliberate indifference by ignoring his sick call requests dur-
    ing the summer months of 2015. Mr. Reck contends that he
    submitted several kites “through the bars” during this peri-
    od and that they went unanswered. Had the Health Care
    Unit properly responded to these kites, continues Mr. Reck,
    his condition would have been treated earlier, and he would
    not have endured much of the pain that he experienced.
    Administrator Walls frankly testified that there was a
    greater chance that a kite would be lost if the inmate chose to
    place it in the bars, as opposed to employing one of the other
    39
    available methods. She did not testify, however, as to the
    frequency of loss with the “through the bars” method. Nor
    does Mr. Reck point to any other evidence that Administra-
    tor Walls was aware that the frequency of loss was so high
    as to make this method of submission unacceptable absent
    substantial reform through her intervention.
    37 R.153-1 at 1.
    38 
    Id.
    39 See R.151-9 at 179:23–180:10.
    24                                                           No. 19-2440
    Under these circumstances, it is clear that the district
    court properly granted summary judgment to Administrator
    Walls. A reasonable trier of fact could not conclude that she
    recklessly failed to improve or discontinue an ineffective no-
    tification system.
    D.
    Mr. Reck also maintains that Wexford violated the Eighth
    Amendment by failing to collect and to respond to requests
    for medical care. In Glisson v. Indiana Department of Correc-
    tions, 
    849 F.3d 372
    , 379 (7th Cir. 2017) (en banc), we set forth
    how a plaintiff can establish such liability against a corpo-
    40
    rate entity such as Wexford:
    The critical question under Monell, reaf-
    firmed in Los Angeles [County] v. Humphries, is
    whether a municipal (or corporate) policy or
    custom gave rise to the harm (that is, caused
    it), or if instead the harm resulted from the acts
    of the entity’s agents. There are several ways in
    which a plaintiff might prove this essential el-
    ement. First, she might show that “the action
    that is alleged to be unconstitutional imple-
    ments or executes a policy statement, ordi-
    nance, regulation, or decision officially adopt-
    ed and promulgated by that body’s officers.”
    40 We questioned in Shields v. Illinois Department of Corrections, whether
    private corporations might also be subject to respondeat superior liability,
    unlike their public counterparts, see 
    746 F.3d 782
    , 790–92 (7th Cir. 2014),
    but we have no need in the present case to address that question, and we
    therefore leave it for another day.
    No. 19-2440                                                           25
    Second, she might prove that the “constitu-
    tional deprivation was visited pursuant to
    governmental ‘custom’ even though such a
    custom has not received formal approval
    through the body’s official decisionmaking
    channels.” Third, the plaintiff might be able to
    show that a government’s policy or custom is
    “made ... by those whose edicts or acts may
    fairly be said to represent official policy.” As
    we put the point in one case, “a person who
    wants to impose liability on a municipality for
    a constitutional tort must show that the tort
    was committed (that is, authorized or directed)
    at the policymaking level of government ... .”
    Either the content of an official policy, a deci-
    sion by a final decisionmaker, or evidence of
    custom will suffice.
    
    Id.
     (cleaned up) (internal citations omitted).
    “[E]vidence of a widespread practice of failing to review
    inmates’ timely filed medical requests” can support a delib-
    erate indifference charge against the entity responsible for
    reviewing the requests. Thomas v. Cook Cnty. Sheriff’s Dep’t,
    41
    
    604 F.3d 293
    , 303 (7th Cir. 2010). An entity “faced with ac-
    41 In Thomas, the inmate presented evidence that the medical requests
    were not timely retrieved from the lockboxes in which the inmates de-
    posited them. Thomas v. Cook Cnty. Sheriff’s Dep’t, 
    604 F.3d 293
    , 303–04
    (7th Cir. 2010). Several prison employees were aware of this practice and
    knew the dangers of not answering medical requests promptly. 
    Id.
     This
    unofficial custom led to the death of the inmate where prompt retrieval
    (continued … )
    26                                                         No. 19-2440
    tual or constructive knowledge that its agents will probably
    violate constitutional rights, … may not adopt a policy of in-
    action.” King v. Kramer, 
    680 F.3d 1013
    , 1021 (7th Cir. 2012)
    (quoting Warren v. District of Columbia, 
    353 F.3d 36
    , 39 (D.C.
    Cir. 2004)). Isolated acts of individual employees, however,
    are not actionable; something more is required to establish a
    widespread custom or practice for Monell liability. Thomas,
    
    604 F.3d at 303
    . When a plaintiff relies on a widespread prac-
    tice to establish an entity’s liability, “proof of isolated acts of
    misconduct will not suffice; a series of violations must be
    presented to lay the premise of deliberate indifference.”
    Palmer v. Marion County, 
    327 F.3d 588
    , 596 (7th Cir. 2003).
    Here, Mr. Reck has submitted evidence that medical per-
    sonnel took no action on a significant number of his kites.
    These medical requests are supported by Mr. Reck’s testi-
    mony, his contemporaneous copies of the sick call requests,
    and his journal entries. There was no evidence, however,
    that medical personnel received, with one exception, these
    42
    requests. The logs of the medical department do not indi-
    cate that these requests were ever received.
    ( … continued)
    of the medical request forms would have alerted medical staff to the in-
    mate’s condition. Id. at 304.
    42 The record contains the following unanswered sick call requests from
    Mr. Reck:
    x    July 10, 2015—Mr. Reck first complained about
    Crohn’s and fistulas. R.151-2 at 19:19–22, 41:21–42:2.
    (continued … )
    No. 19-2440                                                            27
    ( … continued)
    x   July 14, 2015—Mr. Reck complained to the medical
    technician drawing his blood about his need for
    medical help. Id. at 99:9–100:23.
    x   July 14, 2015—Mr. Reck submitted another sick call
    request. Id. at 110:1–16.
    x   July 19, 2015—Mr. Reck submitted another sick call
    request. Id.
    x   July 28, 2015—Mr. Reck again complained to the
    medical technician drawing his blood. Id. at 101:6–
    23.
    x   August 10, 2015—Mr. Reck submitted another sick
    call request. Id. at 110:1–16.
    x   August 18, 2015—Mr. Reck submitted another sick
    call request. Id.
    x   August 25, 2015—Mr. Reck sent a kite to his counse-
    lor requesting information about his medical issues.
    Id. at 110:21–111:4.
    x   Throughout this time Mr. Reck also verbally told
    other medical health professionals, including medi-
    cation nurses and his counselor, of his need for assis-
    tance. Id. at 84:1–12.
    x   September 1, 2015—Mr. Reck was finally seen by
    Dr. Trost in the Health Care Unit in response to an
    emergency. R.153-2 at 7–8.
    The prison defendants admit to receiving one sick call request from
    Mr. Reck dated July 26, 2015. They say that Mr. Reck was scheduled to
    be seen in response to this request, but an “uncommon” “computer
    glitch” caused Mr. Reck to not be seen for that request. Trost & Wexford
    Br. 29. Either way, there is no evidence that this single incident was the
    act of a policymaking official or “so persistent and widespread as to
    (continued … )
    28                                                           No. 19-2440
    Because this case comes to us in summary judgment pos-
    ture, we must accept Mr. Reck’s testimony and evidence that
    he submitted these requests and that he made some requests
    directly to medical staff. Mr. Reck is also correct in maintain-
    ing that his chosen method of submission, through the cell
    bars, was an authorized method of making such requests.
    However, if Wexford’s medical personnel never received
    these requests, it is difficult to fault them, or Wexford, for
    not having replied.
    There is, however, a more fundamental defect in
    Mr. Reck’s case. There is no evidence that Wexford, or any of
    its employees, had responsibility for the design, monitoring,
    or maintenance of the system of transmitting a prisoner’s re-
    quest through the bars. The documentation to which
    Mr. Reck invites our attention simply does not address that
    matter. Without some showing that Wexford had such re-
    sponsibility, we cannot impose on it liability for the system’s
    alleged malfunction.
    E.
    Mr. Reck’s next contention is that Dr. Trost, Administra-
    tor Walls, and Wexford were deliberately indifferent to his
    medical needs through a practice of chronically understaff-
    ing the Health Care Unit. Deficiencies in staffing and delays
    in treatment can give rise to a deliberate indifference claim.
    Wellman v. Faulkner, 
    715 F.2d 269
    , 274 (7th Cir. 1983). “As a
    ( … continued)
    practically have the force of law,” and thus Monell liability cannot attach.
    See Connick v. Thompson, 
    563 U.S. 51
    , 61 (2011).
    No. 19-2440                                                 29
    practical matter, ‘deliberate indifference’ … can be demon-
    strated by ‘proving there are such systemic and gross defi-
    ciencies in staffing, facilities, equipment, or procedures that
    the inmate population is effectively denied access to ade-
    quate medical care.’” Id. at 272 (quoting Ramos v. Lamm,
    
    639 F.2d 559
    , 575 (10th Cir. 1980)). Where a rule or regulation
    is required to correct a known dangerous custom or practice,
    a public entity’s failure to institute corrective policy is ac-
    tionable. Thomas, 
    604 F.3d at 303
    .
    The magistrate judge found that Administrator Walls,
    Dr. Trost, and Wexford were aware of the staffing issues but
    also found neither Administrator Walls nor Dr. Trost had the
    authority to fill the vacancies. If they cannot hire more doc-
    tors, they cannot be responsible for the lack of doctors.
    Dr. Trost might have been negligent in his duties, but a mere
    failure to attend to one’s responsibilities, without more, does
    not reach the level of deliberate indifference the Constitution
    prohibits.
    Moreover, there is no evidence that the understaffing
    harmed Mr. Reck. Prior to September 1, 2015, Mr. Reck was
    not scheduled to see medical personnel, so lack of available
    personnel cannot have harmed him. From September 1 to
    October 2, the care Mr. Reck was receiving was, according to
    his own expert, reasonable and thus cannot serve as the ba-
    sis for a deliberate indifference claim.
    After October 2, Mr. Reck raises two potential instances
    when he was harmed by understaffing: (1) On January 11,
    2016, he was scheduled on the physician call line but was not
    seen because no physician was present. That nonparty doc-
    tor was absent due to a scheduling conflict, and Mr. Reck
    was recalled for the following week. There is no evidence
    30                                                  No. 19-2440
    Dr. Lochard’s scheduling conflict was caused by Adminis-
    trator Walls, Dr. Trost, or Wexford. (2) Mr. Reck was sched-
    uled on the physician call line on January 17, 2016, for a re-
    newal of his medicines. He was not seen because the call line
    ran out of time. However, his medications were renewed
    two days later, and he was seen by a physician on January
    24. There is no evidence that the call line ran out of time due
    to understaffing, a physician shortage, or because of
    Dr. Trost’s absenteeism. Nor can we say on this record that
    having his medication renewal delayed by two days effec-
    tively denied Mr. Reck medical care.
    For these reasons the district court did not err in granting
    summary judgment on the understaffing claim.
    Conclusion
    In the end, the district court correctly determined that the
    defendants are entitled to summary judgment. Accordingly,
    its judgment is affirmed.
    AFFIRMED
    No. 19-2440                                                      31
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