The Bundaberg Hospital Commission of Inquiry of Inquiry in Queensland, Australia has recommended that Dr. Jayant Patel, M.D. be charged with making false representations, fraud, negligence, and either murder or manslaughter and that extradition proceedings be started. The Commission was appointed to investigate allegations that Patel had killed or seriously harmed more than 100 patients and that hospital and government officials had failed to intervene when notified that serious problems existed. Patel is suspected of botching operations, falsifying records, and failing to transfer critically ill patients to other facilities during the two-year period when he served as director of surgery at Bundaberg Hospital in Queensland.
Patel graduated from medical school in India but took his surgical training in the United States. In 1984, during his residency, the New York State Board for Professional Medical Conduct (BPMC) disciplined him for entering patient histories and physicals without examining patients, failing to maintain patient records, and harassing a patient for cooperating with the New York board’s investigation. The BPMC placed him on three years of probation and fined him on each charge.
Patel nevertheless completed his surgical training and was able to obtain an Oregon medical license in 1989. He then practiced in Portland until 2001 when the Oregon Board of Medical Examiners disciplined him for gross or repeated acts of negligence and unprofessional conduct and restricted his ability to perform several types of operations. When the current scandal surfaced, he returned to Oregon, but the Oregon Board inactivated his license for failing to report that he had moved to Queensland [2].
After hearing testimony for nine days, the Bundaberg Commission has concluded that Patel had committed fraud during the registration process by failing to to disclose that the Oregon Board of Medical Examiners disciplined him for gross or repeated acts of negligence and unprofessional conduct and restricted his ability to perform several types of operations. Transcripts of the Commission’s hearings and other relevant documents are posted to its Web site.
References
- Morris A and others. Bundaberg Hospital Commission of Inquiry. Interim report of 10 June, 2005.
- Jayant M. Patel, M.D. Summary of known disciplinary record. Oregon Board of Medical Examiners, April 2005.
This article was posted on June 12, 2005.
