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Originally Posted at: http://www.hindu.com/thehindu/holnus/003200505261167.htm

Ex-colleagues give "Dr. Death" glowing references

Brisbane, May 26. (AP): An Indian-trained surgeon linked to the deaths of at least 87 patients in Australia over two years had been given glowing references by six former colleagues in the United States, despite having been cited for negligence there earlier.

Jayant "Jay" Patel, 56, has been dubbed 'Dr. Death' by the local media.

He is now the subject of an official inquiry examining why the doctor was permitted to practice medicine in Queensland state in 2003 despite a nearly 20-year history of criticism and sanctions imposed by medical authorities in Oregon and New York as a result of his work practices.

Patel, who was educated in India and completed his residency in New York state, was first cited in 1984 by New York health officials for failing to examine patients prior to surgery.

He moved to Oregon in 1989, and began working for the Kaiser Permanente Hospital in Portland.

After reviewing 79 of his cases, Kaiser restricted Patel's practice in 1998, banning him from doing certain types of operations -- such as liver and pancreatic surgeries --and forcing him to seek a second opinion in complicated cases.

After reviewing four of those cases, in which three patients died, the Oregon Board of Medical Examiners made Patel's restriction statewide in September 2000, and New York health officials forced Patel to surrender his license in that state in April 2001.

The Medical Board of Queensland alleges Patel -- branded "Dr. Death" by Australian media -- falsified his application to practice in Australia by removing his disciplinary history, but acknowledges that it failed to check his application against US medical records.

But documents submitted to the inquiry by Queensland health officials and obtained by The AP show that Patel came highly recommended by six of his former colleagues in letters dated more than seven months after his license was restricted by the Oregon Board.

Four of the letters were written on Kaiser Permanente letterhead, one was a copy of an internal Kaiser memorandum and another was on private letterhead.

In one letter, dated June 4, 2001, a senior Kaiser anesthesiologist, Bhawar Singh, wrote of Patel: "His balanced judgment, surgical skills and decisive steps, especially in the management of high risk complex procedures, has always been appreciated."

When contacted by The AP for comment on the letter, which was written on Kaiser letterhead, Singh said all questions relating to Patel had to be referred back to the organisation.

Another physician, Joseph Leimert, the head of Kaiser's Department of Hematology and Medical Oncology, also wrote a letter on June 4, 2001, saying aspects of Patel's care were "unparalleled by any provider in any department at any time in my professional experience."

"I profoundly regret Dr. Patel's departure and recommend his services without reservation," he wrote in the letter, which was also on Kaiser letterhead.

Leimert also refused to comment to The AP, saying he been instructed not to speak to the media.