Obesity surgeon — with support from colleagues — kept practicing despite complaints, via Boston Globe

Another reason to subscribe to the Globe: This Sunday story about how hard it is to get the knives out of the hands of potentially dangerous surgeons. The piece talks about  the state medical licensing board’s slow process for reviewing complaints against practitioners like high-profile obesity doc Dr. Sheldon Randall. The story is behind the pay wall, but here’s the nut.

Two months ago, the panel suspended Randall’s medical license, accusing him of a pattern of negligence and declaring him an “immediate and serious threat’’ to the public. Investigators charge that he did not recognize and treat post-surgery complications quickly enough in four patients, two of whom died.

Randall, 61, denies the allegations and has appealed the suspension, enlisting a team of experts who said he provided perfectly fine care for those patients. Four prominent Harvard physicians also have written letters to the board supporting him.

Regardless of the outcome, the case exposes defects in the health care system’s efforts to protect patients: Accreditation programs established to help patients choose the best hospitals may offer false assurances, and the medical board can take months to act on complaints. Hospitals do not routinely communicate with each other about disciplinary actions against doctors, and the medical board does not automatically contact hospitals either when suspensions or similar measures are reported to it.

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Seems like the Globe  should have had this story in August. From the state:

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE:                                                                  

Tuesday, August 20, 2013

STATE BOARD OF MEDICINE TAKES DISCIPLINARY ACTION

WAKEFIELD: At its meeting on August 16, 2013, the state Board of Registration in Medicine took disciplinary action against the medical license of Sheldon Randall, M.D.

The Board summarily suspended Dr. Randall’s medical license, finding him an immediate and serious threat to the public health, safety or welfare. The Board based its decision on allegations that Dr. Randall’s treatment of four patients failed to meet the standard of care. Dr. Randall is a 1978 graduate of the Centro de Estudios Universitarios Xochicalco and was first licensed to practice medicine in Massachusetts in 1985.  He practiced general surgery in Medford and Natick.

The Massachusetts Board of Registration in Medicine licenses more than 40,000 physicians, osteopaths and acupuncturists. The Board was created in 1894 to protect the public health and safety by setting standards for the practice of medicine and ensuring that doctors who practice in the Commonwealth are appropriately qualified and competent. The Board investigates complaints, holds hearings and determines sanctions. More information is available at www.mass.gov/massmedboard.

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