UCI doctor disciplined for false surgery record
May 20, 2010
By COURTNEY PERKES
OC Register.com
An anesthesiologist at UC Irvine Medical Center was disciplined Thursday by the California Medical Board for falsely pre-filling out a patient record before surgery.
Dr. Peter Breen, former chairman of the anesthesiology department, reached a settlement with the board for a public letter of reprimand, the least severe form of discipline. Neither Breen nor his attorney, Peter Osinoff, could be reached for comment Thursday.
In 2008, inspectors for the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services discovered that UCI anesthesiologists were attempting to save time by filling out operating room records in advance. In one case, inspectors found a completed form that said a patient left the operating table that day at 10:30 a.m. However, it was 9:30 a.m. and the patient was still in surgery.
A short time later, the board sought to discipline Breen.
According to legal documents, Breen admitted that in 2006 he falsely filled out a surgery form for a cataract patient in advance of surgery, indicating that the patient was stable and comfortable.
No comments:
Post a Comment