By Blythe Bernhard, St. Louis Post-Dispatch
Feb. 19–The Missouri Board of Healing Arts revoked one local doctor’s license and suspended the license of another in the last half of 2007. In addition, two other medical doctors and a physical therapist were disciplined in that time period, according to documents recently released by the board.
The board is responsible for licensing and regulating the state’s 31,000 doctors and other health care providers, including physician assistants and physical therapists.
Investigations of doctors are sparked by the 900 complaints the board receives each year from patients, law enforcement agencies, malpractice claims, hospitals and other physicians. About twice each year, the board releases the names of the doctors who were disciplined in the last six months.
Dr. Pearletha Phillips-Washington of Wentzville lost her license in July after she was convicted of felony prescription drug fraud and fraudulent use of a Social Security number, according to board documents. The medical board determined that the charges were related to her profession and revoked her license. Washington and her attorney, Carter Law, could not be reached for comment.
In August the board reprimanded ear, nose and throat specialist Wallace Berkowitz of St. Louis after charging he violated drug laws in prescribing painkillers and cough syrup.
State investigators in 2006 said they found a patient’s bottle of prescription painkillers unattended on a shelf in Berkowitz’s office. In reviewing medical records, investigators found that 50 out of 64 prescriptions authorized for a patient were not recorded in that patient’s chart. Five other patients’ charts dating back to 2002 failed to note the strength or amounts of the cough syrups and painkillers prescribed to them, according to board documents.
Berkowitz could not be reached for comment.
Also in August, the board suspended the license of anesthesiologist David Mohart of Wildwood for two years. The board charged Mohart with illegally obtaining drugs, including cocaine and ketamine, an anesthetic. To reinstate his license, Mohart must consent to periodic drug tests and complete rehabilitation treatment.
Mohart said he became addicted to painkillers after a back injury.
“I want to assure the public that at no time was I impaired or under the influence while caring for patients,” Mohart said. “I’ve been in a recovery program for the past year sponsored by the state of Missouri and I hope to further study the field of addiction medicine and to help others who suffer from this devastating disease.”
The board reprimanded Chesterfield psychiatrist Narsimha Muddasani in August for practicing without a license. Muddasani twice failed to renew his license before it expired and worked for four months in 2007 and three months in 2004 without a valid license, according to the board. Muddasani could not be reached for comment and was not represented by a lawyer in the case.
Physical therapist Roland Scott Van Nest in August was placed on probation for five years after the medical board charged him with treating a patient without a prescription and hiring unlicensed employees to treat patients.
Van Nest billed insurance companies for services between Jan. 2004 and Oct. 2006 that were performed by unlicensed workers. He also treated a patient for five months in 2005 without a prescription, according to board documents.
Under the terms of his probation, Van Nest must take a class in medical billing and make his billing records, schedule and patient charts available to investigators.
Van Nest works at the Sports Medicine and Training Center in Webster Groves; he could not be reached for comment. His lawyer, Elaine Moss, declined to comment.
The medical board is made up of five medical doctors, three doctors of osteopathy and one public member. Each complaint investigation typically takes the board and its staff six to nine months to complete.
In 2006, the last year with complete figures available, the board disciplined 82 physicians out of more than 14,000 who were practicing in the state.
For more information or to check a doctor’s disciplinary record, visit pr.mo.gov/healingarts.asp or call 573-751-0098.
[email protected] — 314-340-8129
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