A West Virginia doctor says two state government agencies shuttered his practice and stripped him of his license without cause, forcing him into debt and damaging his reputation.
Dr. Roland Chalifoux, who runs Valley Pain Management Clinic in McMechen, in the Northern Panhandle, is suing the West Virginia Bureau for Public Health in Marshall County Circuit Court for lost wages and damages. He says the bureau falsely accused him of reusing syringes after one of his patients contracted bacterial meningitis.
In July 2014, the state Board of Osteopathic Medicine suspended Chalifoux's medical license in an emergency meeting. Two months later, Kanawha Circuit Judge Charles King reinstated it. King found that the board failed to prove Chalifoux had reused needles at his practice before suspending his license.
Scott Kaminski, Chalifoux's lawyer, said he believes the entire process, from the BPH's investigation of the clinic to the osteopathic board's decision to suspend the doctor's license, was mishandled.
"We believe the Bureau of Public Health acted without lawful authority in seeking further records from Dr. Chalifoux's practice after clearing him of any improper practices upon initial review of records and inspection of his facility," Kaminski said. "The bureau then made a press release casting Dr. Chalifoux in a false light and creating public panic, causing damage to his practice and reputation."
The osteopathic board voted to suspend Chalifoux's license after the BPH investigation allegedly found that Chalifoux didn't wear a surgical mask during epidurals, that the clinic reused syringes on more than one patient and that it had other sanitation problems. However, King found that no inspections had been done since December, when the health bureau found that the clinic had "excellent procedures" and Chalifoux was commended for his rapid response to issues raised during a previous site visit.
The BPH issued a news release cautioning that Chalifoux's patients be tested for bloodborne illness in July 2014, prompting the osteopathic board to suspend his license. The release came a full nine months after the agency's initial investigation, and Chalifoux said he had heard nothing from the agency between the investigation and the release.
According to Chalifoux, the BPH failed to prove and "index case" of any bloodborne illness, including meningitis, that originated with the pain management clinic. He also claims that the accusation that he reused needles came from a misreading of the records the clinic provided investigators. His clinic provided more than 1,500 patient records to the BPH, Chalifoux said, but when asked to provide more, the doctor said he questioned why the agency would need more records after being provided so many.
"We had a patient with meningitis following a procedure here - we're not sure if it happened here or not, but nonetheless, that person got ill, but recovered. As with anything else, the Bureau came down to see what was going on . . . it was almost like they were trying to find something, and I don't know what it was predicated on," Chalifoux said. "It was like they were determined to find something - we showed them records, we did this, we did that . . . in reading our [medical records], they got the impression that we had to reuse needles, based on how the notes were written. They misunderstood the template, and in their minds, thought we were reusing needles, which was obviously not true."
Toby Wagoner, spokesman for the Bureau for Public Health, said the agency does not comment specifically on matters that are under litigation.
"The Commissioner of the Bureau for Public Health has a legal duty under West Virginia law to protect the public health and safety," Wagoner said. "This duty includes taking action necessary to obstruct and prevent the introduction and spread of communicable or infectious disease. Upon learning of a breach of infection control practices at Valley Pain Management Clinic in McMechen, West Virginia, an investigation was initiated in accordance with Bureau rules and procedures. This investigation resulted in [then-commissioner Dr. Letitia Tierney] acting pursuant to her duty to warn Valley Pain Management Clinic patients of a potential public health threat."
Tierney resigned at the end of 2014 and was replaced by Dr. Rahul Gupta.
Members of the Osteopathic Board of Medicine did not respond to requests for comment. After Chalifoux's license was restored, Diana Shepard, the osteopathic board's executive director, said the decision "sets a terrible precedent."
Kaminski said the original decision to suspend Chalifoux's license is the bad precedent.
"A license is like a piece of property. The government can't take away my house without due process. If they need my property for the public good, such as to build a school, my house can be taken, but I must first have due process and, ultimately, just compensation," Kaminski said. "Similarly, someone pulled over for DUI doesn't lose their driver's license on the spot. They get up the next morning and drive their car until they have a hearing to suspend their license. The osteopathic board utterly failed in that regard, and their conduct is completely inexcusable, as the board has legal counsel. We believe the executive director of the board misled the board members into action that never should have been taken against Dr. Chalifoux."
Chalifoux first came before the board a decade ago, when he sought a West Virginia medical license after the Texas State Board of Medical Examiners revoked Chalifoux's license in 2004 for violating standards of care in his treatment of three patients, including the 1996 death of a 61-year-old man after unnecessary surgery was performed, according to the board's final order.
The West Virginia Board of Osteopathic Medicine, which was aware of the disciplinary action in Texas, granted Chalifoux a restricted license in 2004 so he could complete a neurosurgery refresher course at West Virginia University's medical school. The board granted Chalifoux an unrestricted license in 2005.
Reach Lydia Nuzum at lydia.nuzum@wvgazettemail.com, 304-348-5189 or follow @lydianuzum on Twitter.