FBI Arrests Oregon Doctor Death

[Parche]

FBI arrests Oregon doctor accused of manslaughter in Australia

09:48 AM PDT on Tuesday, March 11, 2008

Associated Press

PORTLAND, Ore. -- An Oregon doctor accused of manslaughter in the deaths of three patients at an Australian hospital has been arrested.


KGW

Dr. Jayant Patel.
The FBI said Dr. Jayant Patel was taken into custody without incident Tuesday morning at his home in an affluent community in Washington County.


The 57-year-old Patel was born in India but is a U.S. citizen who had worked for years in Oregon before losing his license after a series of botched surgeries.


The Australian government has been seeking his extradition to stand trial for the deaths of the three patients at Bundaberg Base Hospital in the Australian state of Queensland.


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Patel is to appear in U.S. District Court at 1:30 p.m. Tuesday for a hearing on the extradition request.


Background on case:

Patel was hired at Bundaberg in 2003 without disclosing that he had been disciplined for negligence by medical boards in Oregon and New York, according to Australian authorities.


Patel had worked at the Kaiser Permanente hospital in Portland from 1989 to 2001. But the hospital had severely restricted his practice after numerous complaints about botched surgery that resulted in several lawsuits. His practice was later restricted statewide by the Oregon Board of Medical Examiners.


He left Australia in early 2005, just before it was learned he had not fully disclosed his professional history to the Queensland Medical Board. He resurfaced in Portland later in 2005.


In June 2005, two visiting Queensland officials stopped in Portland to urge Patel to voluntarily return to Australia to face an inquiry comparable to a U.S. grand jury.


The six-month inquiry in Australia found that Patel may have contributed directly to the deaths of at least 13 patients who died through an "unacceptable level of care."


The Office of the Queensland Director of Public Prosecutions received more than 35,000 pages of evidence from police, The Australian reported.


In July, the Oregon Board of Medical Examiners unanimously approved an agreement with Patel that his medical license will remain suspended until he proves "that the criminal and administrative process against him in Australia is complete," with all penalties and conditions satisfied.


The agreement effectively bars Patel from applying for a medical license anywhere in the United States.