As a New York medical malpractice lawyer, I understand the trust involved in the relationship between doctor and patient – and the way it can be broken.
While many doctors are consummate professionals who respect the trust in the relationship at all time, there are always some who use it to take advantage of those in their care.
This is perhaps most evident in the case where medical personnel lie about their background and their employer, a major hospital on Long Island, is complicit in the fraud.
CBS New York recently covered a story that goes to the heart of this issue.
A lawsuit was filed on Long Island accuses a physician’s assistant of running an illegal medical practice for years.
The physician’s assistant, John Mitchner, was a “beloved” member of the medical community in Roosevelt, New York.
But it was all a lie.
The lawsuit alleges he has been “pretending” to have a medical degree from Stony Brook since 1995.
He even has websites and advertisements representing himself as a doctor.
He has been seeing patients and giving medical advice on his own at the Roosevelt clinic affiliated with the Nassau University Medical Center (NUMC), despite the fact that as a physician’s assistant he has to be supervised by an actual doctor at all times.
The plaintiff in this case, Nevely Plummer, claims that he had been seeing Mr. Mitchner since 2003 and was lead to believe he was a doctor.
Mr. Plummer took blood tests regularly to determine if he had prostate cancer, and was told by Mr. Mitchner that a blood test is all that’s needed.
Mr. Plummer explicitly asked Mr. Mitchner if he needed a rectal exam to test for prostate cancer and was told that he did not.
After being examined by real doctors, Mr. Plummer discovered he actually had prostate cancer.
In fact, it was likely that he had the cancer for the last 10 years while under Mitchner’s care.
Because of the delayed diagnoses, he had not received timely treatment and the cancer had spread to his bones.
His long-term prognosis is unclear, and he continues to suffer severe pain as a result of his condition.
Cases like this one highlight the role that New York medical malpractice lawsuits play in keeping the medical profession safe and honest.
Clearly Mr. Mitchner thought he could get away with holding himself out to the community as a doctor, illegally treating patients to their detriment.
In fact, he actually got away with it for years.
Who knows how many people were affected by his lies?
Surely Mr. Plummer is not alone in being harmed by this blatant malpractice.
Without this lawsuit, how long could Mr. Mitchner have continued his fraudulent practice?
Who would hold him accountable for the lives he hurt?
Unfortunately, it is impossible to rely solely on the medical profession to regulate themselves in these cases.
Promoting fair access to the legal system in these situations is necessary to force these issues and bring them to the public’s attention.
A lawsuit can provide deserved compensation and redress for the affected patient.
In addition, by ensuring punishment and the threat of appropriate monetary verdicts, the justice system serves as a reminder to medical professionals and their employers of their responsibility to perform their work honestly and with the highest standard of care.
Here, at The DiPietro Law Firm, we’re committed to helping victims of sexual abuse and assault find the justice they deserve.
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Founder Anthony T. DiPietro, Esq. is a compassionate and skilled trial attorney who has completely dedicated the past 23 years of his career to litigating medical malpractice and sexual abuse cases against major corporate institutions including hospitals, medical clinics, schools, and other wrongdoers.
Mr. DiPietro has also obtained some of New York State’s highest verdicts and settlements, and has been selected to New York State Super Lawyers® each year, for the past 10 years in a row.
In 2022, Mr. DiPietro was selected as one of America’s Top 100 High-Stakes Litigators for the landmark cases he’s won on behalf of survivors of sexual exploitation and abuse.
Here, at The DiPietro Law Firm, we’re committed to helping victims of sexual abuse and assault find the justice they deserve.
All information discussed during our consultations always remains completely 100% confidential.
Would you like our help?
As a New York City medical malpractice lawyer I know that medicine is increasingly a specialized arena. This is likely an outgrowth of the myriad of advances
Our New York City medical malpractice law office knows that trust is essential in the medical arena. Every patient is relying on the knowledge and expertise of
Years of Abuse: 1987 – 2016
Brief:
Robert Hadden, a disgraced Obstetrician-Gynecologist (OB/GYN) who worked for Columbia University and NewYork-Presbyterian Hospital, was criminally convicted in 2016 of sexually exploiting and abusing patients under the guise of medical care.
Hadden used his position of authority and trust to sexually exploit women and girls for nearly three decades as a Columbia University physician.
All the while, Columbia University and New York-Presbyterian Hospital administrators turned their backs and ignored reports of Hadden’s abuse, gaslighting patients and the public.
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Years of Abuse: 1979 – 2022
Brief:
David H. Broadbent is a former OB/GYN under criminal investigation and facing civil lawsuits for sexual abuse of patients.
Broadent worked at multiple medical facilities in the Provo, Orem and Salt Lake City, UT areas.
These facilities included Intermountain Healthcare’s Utah Valley Hospital, MountainStar Healthcare’s Timpanogos Hospital, other Utah health care providers, and he also had adverse action taken against his medical license back in 1990.
Read More:
Years of Abuse: 1990 – 2016
Read More: University of Southern California & Predator George Tyndall
Years of Abuse: 1961 – 1996
Brief:
22 predator teachers and administrators, over the course of 35 years.
Years of Abuse: 1960 – 1982
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