Medical Justice provides free consultations to doctors facing medico-legal obstacles. We have solutions for doctor-patient conflicts, unwarranted demands for refunds, online defamation (patient review mischief), meritless litigation, and a gazillion other issues. We also provide counsel specific to COVID-19. If you are navigating a medico-legal obstacle, visit our booking page to schedule a free consultation – or use the tool shared below.
"Can Medical Justice solve my problem?" Click here to review recent consultations...
We’ve been protecting doctors from medico-legal threats since 2001. We’ve seen it all. Here’s a sample of typical recent consultation discussions…
- Former employee stole patient list. Now a competitor…
- Patient suing doctor in small claims court…
- Just received board complaint…
- Allegations of sexual harassment by employee…
- Patient filed police complaint doctor inappropriately touched her…
- DEA showed up to my office…
- Patient “extorting” me. “Pay me or I’ll slam you online.”
- My carrier wants me to settle. My case is fully defensible…
- My patient is demanding an unwarranted refund…
- How do I safely terminate doctor-patient relationship?
- How to avoid reporting to Data Bank…
- I want my day in court. But don’t want to risk my nest egg…
- Hospital wants to fire me…
- Sham peer review inappropriately limiting privileges…
- Can I safely use stem cells in my practice?
- Patient’s results are not what was expected…
- Just received request for medical records from an attorney…
- Just received notice of intent to sue…
- Just received summons for meritless case…
- Safely responding to negative online reviews…
We challenge you to supply us with a medico-legal obstacle we haven’t seen before. Know you are in good hands. Schedule your consultation below – or click here to visit our booking page.
Thomas Hobbes summed up life as a resident. Solitary, poor, nasty, brutish, and short. Did I leave anything out? Dr. Thomas Farmer learned all about Thomas Hobbes in his residency. Then he overcame all obstacles.
Dr. Farmer was a family medicine resident at Baptist Health in Madisonville, Kentucky (BHM). He started in July 2017, presumably with high hopes.
On November 4, 2019, a mother of two children filed a complaint to the clinic office manager. What rankled her so much? Well, she was concerned Dr. Farmer was “behaving suspiciously.” She claimed he was jittery and picking at places on his arms and nose. The woman believed “he was on something.”
Uh-huh.
According to the legal filing, this complaint was shuttled to the residency program director. She then shuttled the complaint to BHM’s human resource director.
This HR director spoke with two supervising residents who were on duty at the time of the alleged incident.
What did they see? Well, nothing unusual. One reported “he was his usual self.”
By the way, Farmer was noted to have ADHD. So, he could be forgiven for appearing jittery.
Then things went off the rails.
When a BHM employee is accused of being on drugs, its policy requires the physician be notified immediately, an interview conducted immediately, and the employee drug tested immediately.
You can guess how religiously this was followed.
Farmer was not immediately notified. He was not immediately sent for a drug test.
Farmer first learned of the allegation the next morning. He was called to the residency director’s office. According to the legal complaint, he was asked to then go immediately to BHM lab which was 15 ft from the office. He was then told no need to be drug tested. The complaint said BHM administration already decided the punishment, with no opportunity to refute the claim.
On November 15, 2019, BHM’s Chief Medical Officer sent a letter to the Kentucky Board of Medical Licensure letting them know of the anonymous complaint. Did the letter include the refuting statements? No.
One week later, the Licensing Board issued an interim order preventing Farmer from practicing medicine until the case was reviewed by an inquiry panel. A report was made in the National Practitioner Data Bank that Dr. Farmer could not safely practice medicine. How come? Substance abuse.
Then the pile-on started.
He was ordered to complete a 96-hour inpatient program at Metro Atlanta Recovery Residences. Once he “graduated” from that program, he had to sign a contract abstaining from alcohol for two years and submit to random drug testing.
He was allowed to return to the residency program. To finish on time. Just kidding about finishing on time. Though he did ultimately finish.
The Scarlet Letter on his record limited his job prospects.
He did end up having his day in court.
The lawsuit was heard by a jury in Jefferson Circuit Court, which chose to award Farmer $3.7 million. That includes $236,000 for breach of contract by not following established corporate guidelines, $170,000 in lost wages and $3.5 million for humiliation, and mental and emotional distress.
Farmer applied to the Tennessee Board of Medical Examiners for permission to practice medicine in 2021. He is now in family practice in Tennessee.
Do the math. $3.7M
Many residents graduate with lots of debt. Dr. Farmer is off to a good start.
I wish him well.
What do you think?
Medical Justice provides free consultations to doctors facing medico-legal obstacles. We have solutions for doctor-patient conflicts, unwarranted demands for refunds, online defamation (patient review mischief), meritless litigation, and a gazillion other issues. We also provide counsel specific to COVID-19. If you are navigating a medico-legal obstacle, visit our booking page to schedule a free consultation – or use the tool shared below.
"Can Medical Justice solve my problem?" Click here to review recent consultations...
We’ve been protecting doctors from medico-legal threats since 2001. We’ve seen it all. Here’s a sample of typical recent consultation discussions…
- Former employee stole patient list. Now a competitor…
- Patient suing doctor in small claims court…
- Just received board complaint…
- Allegations of sexual harassment by employee…
- Patient filed police complaint doctor inappropriately touched her…
- DEA showed up to my office…
- Patient “extorting” me. “Pay me or I’ll slam you online.”
- My carrier wants me to settle. My case is fully defensible…
- My patient is demanding an unwarranted refund…
- How do I safely terminate doctor-patient relationship?
- How to avoid reporting to Data Bank…
- I want my day in court. But don’t want to risk my nest egg…
- Hospital wants to fire me…
- Sham peer review inappropriately limiting privileges…
- Can I safely use stem cells in my practice?
- Patient’s results are not what was expected…
- Just received request for medical records from an attorney…
- Just received notice of intent to sue…
- Just received summons for meritless case…
- Safely responding to negative online reviews…
We challenge you to supply us with a medico-legal obstacle we haven’t seen before. Know you are in good hands. Schedule your consultation below – or click here to visit our booking page.
Jeffrey Segal, MD, JD
Chief Executive Officer and Founder
Dr. Jeffrey Segal, Chief Executive Officer and Founder of Medical Justice, is a board-certified neurosurgeon. Dr. Segal is a Fellow of the American College of Surgeons; the American College of Legal Medicine; and the American Association of Neurological Surgeons. He is also a member of the North American Spine Society. In the process of conceiving, funding, developing, and growing Medical Justice, Dr. Segal has established himself as one of the country’s leading authorities on medical malpractice issues, counterclaims, and internet-based assaults on reputation.
Dr. Segal was a practicing neurosurgeon for approximately ten years, during which time he also played an active role as a participant on various state-sanctioned medical review panels designed to decrease the incidence of meritless medical malpractice cases.
Dr. Segal holds a M.D. from Baylor College of Medicine, where he also completed a neurosurgical residency. Dr. Segal served as a Spinal Surgery Fellow at The University of South Florida Medical School. He is a member of Phi Beta Kappa as well as the AOA Medical Honor Society. Dr. Segal received his B.A. from the University of Texas and graduated with a J.D. from Concord Law School with highest honors.
In 2000, he co-founded and served as CEO of DarPharma, Inc, a biotechnology company in Chapel Hill, NC, focused on the discovery and development of first-of-class pharmaceuticals for neuropsychiatric disorders.
Dr. Segal is also a partner at Byrd Adatto, a national business and health care law firm. Byrd Adatto was selected as a Best Law Firm in the 2023 edition of the “Best Law Firms” list by U.S. News – Best Lawyers. With over 50 combined years of experience in serving doctors, dentists, and other providers, Byrd Adatto has a national pedigree to address most legal issues that arise in the business and practice of medicine.
Was there any personal liability for the assholes who perpetrated the above through their own malfeasance, misfeasance, and nonfeasance? if not, explain.
I doubt it. They likely were acting in their roles as employees of the institution. So the institution took the heat. As to whether they lost their jobs, don’t know.
good for him!!! The administrators, residency director were all
clueless as to the process they set up to deal with possible drug abuse among their doctors. I think in the future, they will be better informed!!! Hahahah
As far as I know, I do not have ADHD. But who knows. Sometimes I tend to bite the mucosa inside my mouth, perhaps nervously. When I was a surgical resident, I was “jittery.” I was the only DPM resident at the VA and Army hospital. I knew I was being watched by everyone, or for any possible mistake. I assume that DOs also were during those years.
I was never reported for potential substance abuse, but nowadays, I could see it happening. It is very unusual for residents to win lawsuits against any employer, much less get a financial redress.
Cartoonist Scott Adams (Dilbert), himself somewhat ADHD, has declared that EVERYTHING you attempt to do now, has at least 3 levels of difficulty and a built-in unlikelihood of completion.
He states that this happens because of the new pattern of regulations and acres of paper and software obstructing every attempt. He adds to that “a generalized incompetence.”
Looks like that happened to this resident. He was very willing to be tested. Never happened. Why not?
Dilbert Rules.
Michael M. Rosenblatt, DPM
I do have ADD. Trust me, it’s a PITA. (My internist once told me I couldn’t have ADD – I’m a dentist. He’s no longer my internist for this and other reasons.) I would hope that if a resident has ADD or ADHD they should tell someone in their program because staying focused is a challenge, getting adequate rest (when possible) is a challenge, sitting or standing relatively still for extended periods is a challenge. Been there, done that, still doing that. Shame on his hospital for dropping the ball big-time. Kudos to Dr. Farmer for standing up to them, winning and persevering.
This article should be forwarded to all program directors so they don’t repeat these mistakes.
This is NOT over for this Doctor. We see this all of the time. A doctor has a very remote chance of winning. And, he wins. Then, down the road, “something” happens, like a SHAM PEER REVIEW or he is set up, but this time, it is well done with significant amount of documentation, with some of these meeting actually happened. And, the Director of Nursing will be asked to get involved and put the word out to the Nurses to “be on the lookout” ) ,BOLO, for anything that can be documented. Then, the real games begin, and this time, this doctor will not prevail.
This is not Medical Malpractice. This is the abuse of the physician Peer Review statutes. Much quicker to get Data Banked ( 30 days) and then, a severe hit to his career.
Richard Willner, Exective Director
The Center for Peer Review Justice.
Sham peer review. That is all one needs to know. Everyone followed the rules, except those that were exculpatory to the physician. Is this a rare occurrence? Unfortunately not. The Association of American Physicians and Surgeons have been documenting this kind of harassment for years. Did the doctor actually get paid? Was it not clawed back on appeal? Will this follow him in his career forever? Yes. Will he ever be exonerated and his record expunged? Nope. So no real justice has been done. What about all of the people who aided and abetted this tragedy? Will they ever be punished? Will the board of medical licensure in KY (known to be one of the most severe in the US at punishing physicians), ever be punished for its actions, acting “in good faith” “for the protection of patients”? Of course not. Until such time as the scales of justice are made level, there will be no justice for physicians. Kentucky due to its board of medicine is likely to continue losing 2/3 of its medical school graduates to other states with fairer boards of medicine and a fairer practice environment. Oh, by the way, what was the patient harm in this case? None that can be discerned. So what patient injury came out of this that should cause such draconian punishment to the physician? None. Yet this travesty of justice continued. Why go to medical school and residency to have a target painted on one’s back? Is there any wonder there is still decades later an ongoing shortage of physicians? Physicians are viewed, as a former board member of a hospital said decades ago to the assembled medical staff, “You are no better than the people that sweep the floor, and you are just as easily replaced”. A former federal official who went to work for a hospital system (as their compliance and ethics guru), said to an assembled group of medical staff presidents from multiple different hospitals, “I have put more of you (physicians) away than I care to count”. These folks permeate medicine and medical practice. They make it untenable to work in hospital system environments that physicians are being to forced to work in due to economic circumstances. Eventually the system will fall under its own weight. When it does, perhaps medicine can be resurrected, with physicians being viewed as the self sacrificing noble people that they are.
How many federal laws are there? Don’t know? Well, there have been serious investigations on this very topic by the government and by the House and Senate committees and their answer is that no body knows. There are too many laws. And the regulators essentially make a zillion more laws. And the regulators hire private contractors whom can easily find alleged wrong doing ( medically unnecessary anyone?) and using the False Claims Act ( $22000 fine for each claim) literally destroy a very easy target… a physician or a surgeon.
Regarding Sham Peer Review, Larry Huntoon from the AASP and I spoke to each other after my second lecture to them. I was delighted that Larry got involved. And, the Center for Peer Review Justice was born after I got rid of EVERY state board member of the North Dakota Board of Podiatric Medicine ( 2000-2003). I did not use lawyers, just an incredible quantity of negative PR and the board members were fired or resigned.
Sham Peer Review or a better name is “Physician Peer Review Fraud”, is legal and here to stay. I am pragmatic. But, that does not mean that we roll over and play dead. We fight, but fight smart. Its not all bad news. Doctors, usually surgeons, can survive this, and I urge those who are targeted to consult with me as I do have 23 years of experience in working these cases without going to Court. Everyone is very angry and wants their day in Court. But, reality is that the chance of winning is very remote. This is not medical malpractice where the physician wins perhaps 80-90 percent of the time. Lawyers are involved, but, not too involved, hopefully, as we try to calm the seas, and keep the damage to a minimum.
So, in other words, if someone wants to be a physician, they need to carefully choose the state they practice in? Damn. I got depressed reading all of the responses. Definitely not a good situation.
Unbelievable abuse of power over a poor resident working 70-80 hours per week. For all I know, most residents might look like they are “on something” because they are sleep deprived. Well done. I thank the Court for understanding the injustice involved in this issue. Unfortunately, many residents like him gets ran over by corporate lawyers of the hospital. This is a little guy getting justice against a huge organization that has no consideration for individual residents.