Unlicensed Doctor Treated Disabled Patients at State Facility in Iowa
Attorney
(866) 735-1102 Ext 335
Previously, Glenwood Resource Center was investigated by the United States Department of Justice, Civil Rights Division. Today's Des Moines Register report indicates the Woodward supervisory staff once again walk dangerously close to falling into hot soup.
According to this morning’s newspaper, William Rafael Sanchez was hired four months ago to work with patients at Glenwood Resource Center. Glenwood is on the west side of the State of Iowa and operates as a facility for those with disabilities. Doctor Sanchez, 35, attended medical school in the Dominican Republic. For the four months Doctor Sanchez worked at the state facility he was according to the Des Moines Register unlicensed. It’s not clear if he was unlicensed in just Iowa or any state.
What is Glenwood Resource Center in Iowa?
It's a state run facility for the disabled.
Structure of the organization:
Glenwood Resource Center is operated by the Iowa Department of Human Services, under the directorship of Eugene Gessow and under the leadership of Sally Titus, Deputy Director for Field Operations. The facility’s superintendent is Thomas J. Hoogestraat.
Interdisciplinary teams are led by Qualified Mental Retardation Professionals (QMRPs) in an integrated approach to service provision. Team members include the individual, the individual's family/guardian, local county or DHS staff, direct support professionals, psychologist, psychology assistant, social worker, occupational therapist, speech/language pathologist, physical therapist, audiologist, vocational/day program specialist, leisure specialist, dietitian, nurse, physician, pharmacist, psychiatrist, and dental assistant. Specialty medical services are offered by community providers through on-campus clinics and include: podiatry, surgery, otolaryngology (ENT), gynecology, and optometry.
Services are person-centered and strengths-based. GRC’s goal is for any person who chooses to transition to a community based-setting to have that opportunity.
Does the Iowa Medical Board show Dr. Sanchez to hold an Iowa medical license?
Physicians who hold an Iowa medical license are published on an Iowa Board of Medicine website. The Iowa Board of Medicine home page allows you to locate records of physicians who practiced in and outside of Iowa. That government site makes public basic information concerning physicians and it shows Dr. Sanchez being born in 1973, holding a license as a medical doctor (M.D.), whose license is in “1st Review”. Dr. Sanchez’ address is noted as 4355 N. Camino Kino, Tucson, Arizona 85718. He received his diploma in 2002 from the Dept. Of Med. Fac. Of Health Sciences Catholic University Of Madre And Maestra. No specialty is designated, no educational history (other than what’s above) is noted and no public board action information is on file. There is no date shown for a license being issued in Iowa.
AIM
Association of State Medical Board Executive Directors
Iowa Board of Medicine Search Results
|
Medical License Verification
|
|
Licensee Name
|
Sanchez, William Rafael
|
Sanchez, William Rafael
|
Birth Year
|
1973
|
|
Licensee Number
|
License Type
|
License Status
|
License Issue Date
|
License Expiration Date
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
M.D.
|
1st Review
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Specialty 1
|
Not Specified
|
Specialty 2
|
Not specified
|
|
|
|
|
Address 1
|
4355 N Camino Kino
|
|
|
|
|
Address 2
|
|
|
|
|
|
City State Zip
|
Tucson AZ 85718
|
|
|
|
|
Diploma From
|
Dept Of Med Fac Of Health Sciences Catholic University Of Madre And Maestra
|
Diploma Year
|
2002
|
|
|
|
|
Education History
|
|
From Date
|
To Date
|
Institution Name
|
Degree/Experience
|
Verified
|
|
|
|
No Public Board Action Information on File
|
Data last updated on 10/28/2008
Return to the Iowa Home Page
Direct questions and comments about these results to
Iowa Board of Medicine
400 SW 8th Street, Suite C
Des Moines, IA 50309-4686
Phone (515) 281-5171
This Board's data has been searched 3716859 times since 12/11/1997
Please read the AIM Disclaimer
©Copyright 1997 2008 Nicholas Hayer
Does the Arizona Medical Board show Dr. Sanchez to hold an Arizona medical license?
The Arizona Medical Board’s official website has five licensed physicians with the name Sanchez. William Rafael Sanchez is not one of them.
Official Website of the
Arizona Medical Board
|
Multiple Matches Found, Please Select One and Click "Show Profile."
|
|
|
Show Profile
|
Sanchez, James D. Specialty Hematology/Oncology
|
|
Show Profile
|
Sanchez, Raul M. Specialty Critical Care Medicine (Internal Medicine)
|
|
Show Profile
|
Sanchez, Rene J. Specialty General Preventive Medicine
|
|
Show Profile
|
Sanchez, Richard Specialty Pediatrics
|
|
Show Profile
|
Sanchez, Robert B. Specialty Diagnostic Radiology
|
|
The State of Iowa paid $26,686 over a 16 week period to Dr. Sanchez. Doctors are hired for this facility by the Iowa Department of Human Services, which operates the Glenwood facility. According to the report given to the Register Dr. Sanchez “performed detailed chart audits for a number of residents with complicated and extensive medical histories…” The director of Glenwood is Roger Munns who spoke for Iowa Department of Human Services.
Glenwood has experienced nine deaths of the 320 residents in the past eight months. Since January 2007 federal and state inspectors have been monitoring the facility. A recent report as reported by the Register was extremely critical of the facilities performance concerning care.
Federal officials say Iowa's Glenwood Resource Center for the disabled still is not providing adequate medical care to residents or conducting adequate investigations into their deaths.
In a new report, the U.S. Department of Justice also says nursing services at the home - which have allegedly contributed to at least two residents' deaths - are seriously lacking.
Patient-care plans are of poor quality, and some workers have "little to no understanding" of the risks associated with life-threatening conditions, the report adds.
On September 19, 2008 the Register reported about a resident whose sudden death prompted another round of investigations.
Another resident of the state-run Glenwood Resource Center for the disabled has died unexpectedly, prompting a new set of investigations into the home's operations.
Iowa Protection and Advocacy, which monitors the care of the disabled, said Thursday that a 53-year-old male resident died Sept. 11.
The man had been taken to Creighton University Medical Center in Omaha sometime the day before. There were indications he had been vomiting and may have choked on his vomit.
In August of 2005 Iowa State inspectors recommended the federal government stop funding the Glenwood Resource Center. That report concluded that without Medicaid and Medicare funding the facility would be forced to close. At that time Roger Munns was reported to said the matter would be corrected and was under control.
Inspectors Recommend Feds Cut Off Funds To Iowa Institution
By Dave Reynolds, Inclusion Daily Express
August 22, 2005
GLENWOOD, IOWA--State inspectors are recommending that the federal government stop funding the Glenwood Resource Center, an institution housing 500 people with mental disabilities.
If federal Medicaid and Medicare funding is pulled, the facility would be forced to close.
Friday's Des Moines Register reported that the Iowa Department of Inspections and Appeals made the recommendations following the death of a female resident and several reports of sexual abuse of other residents.
On April 25, the woman -- who was blind, had trouble walking, and was supposed to be supervised -- fell headfirst down a staircase. She died a few weeks later after being hospitalized with multiple neck and rib fractures.
The other allegations involve a staff member who is suspected of sexually abusing five residents and bullying coworkers.
Department of Human Services spokesman Roger Munns said last Wednesday that he's confident the facility will correct the problems and will not be forced to shut down.
Restraints and residents deaths are discussed in the Inclusion Daily Express, International Disability Rights News Service going back to 2001. What is there isn’t pleasant or flattering for the staff at Glenwood.
Staff Told Not To Talk To Investigators About Resident's Death
By Dave Reynolds, Inclusion Daily Express
April 6, 2001
WOODWARD, IOWA--They just didn't feel like it.
That's the reason staff members at Woodward Resource Center, an institution for people with mental retardation, refused to talk to investigators from the federal Protection and Advocacy program over the death of a resident last month.
They just didn't feel like it.
"It always seems to us that people tend to look for a scapegoat," said Jan Corderman, president of the union that represents state employees.
The death of Larry Tielebein, a 45 year old man is gripping.
Restraint Death Ruled A Homicide
By Dave Reynolds, Inclusion Daily Express
July 11, 2001
WOODWARD, IOWA--Larry Tielebein was killed.
The official finding by the state's medical examiner is that the 45-year-old man, who had mental retardation and cerebral palsy, died from "compression or positional asphyxia".
In other words, he suffocated to death.
Tielebein suffocated to death on March 18 while staff members restrained him on a kitchen floor at Woodward Resource Center, a state-operated institution housing 270 people with mental retardation.
And even though Tielebein's death is officially listed as a homicide, no charges have been filed.
At least one death resulted in a lawsuit for damages.
Parents Sue Facility And Staff For Boy's Restraint Death
By Dave Reynolds, Inclusion Daily Express
August 16, 2001
MASON CITY, IOWA--On Tanner Wilson's first day at Gerard of Iowa care center two years ago, staff member Lori Ingham tried to "take him to the ground". During the attempt to restrain him, Ingham succeeded in breaking the boy's leg.
On February 9 of this year, a year and a half after being admitted to the mental health facility, Wilson died while being restrained in a "routine physical holding".
He was 11 years old.
Officials have ruled the cause of death as asphyxiation -- he suffocated to death -- and are considering it a homicide.
One of the employees allegedly involved in restraining Wilson when he died was none other than Lori Ingham. She now faces a charge of child endangerment in connection with the death.
This Tuesday, Tanner's parents, Robert and Karen Wilson, filed a lawsuit against Ingham and fellow employee Jeremy Witt, along with Gerard Treatment Programs and an affiliate known as Nexus Inc..
According to the Des Moines Register, the suit claims Ingham and Witt "used unreasonable and unnecessary force in restraining and eventually killing" the boy. It also charges Gerard, which was being paid $9,000 a month to care for Wilson, with failing to properly train and supervise its employees.
The Wilsons are asking for unspecified compensatory and punitive damages. They say they do not want other parents to go through what they have gone through.
The United States Department of Justice, Civil Rights Division issued an investigative report on July 9, 2002 concerning its investigation going back to March 22, 1999.
From April 2000 through March 2001, an average of 56 Woodward residents each spent about 18 hours in mechanical and manual restraints each month, according to Woodward's "monthly restraint reports." Some individuals, such as RI and DM, were repeatedly restrained for more than 300 hours a month, as part of behavior management programs. A number of Woodward residents, such as EK, DS, PN, and ED, were regularly placed in four- and five-point restraints in excess of 10 hours a month. Also, residents such as HC, GG and JP occasionally have been immobilized in a so-called "papoose board," either during medical procedures or as part of a behavior program.
The report concluded with minimal remdial measures to be taken at Woodward to To remedy the deficiencies discussed above and to protect the constitutional and federal statutory rights of Woodward and Glenwood residents, Iowa promptly should implement the minimum remedial measures set forth below. These apply to both facilities unless otherwise indicated.
The report makes clear the limits of using restraints and what is considered by the Justice Department to be required to meet U.S. Constitutional requirements. The recommendations further outline general medical care requirements including hiring a well-qualified medical director, establishing a formal medial peer-review system, medical quality assurance program, a system to track errors, establishing uniform medical care policies and protocols as well as monitoring requirements.
E. General Medical Care
Individuals with health problems should be promptly identified, assessed, diagnosed, treated, monitored and, as monitoring indicates is necessary, reassessed, diagnosed and treated, consistent with current professional standards of care, including with documentation adequate to withstand clinical scrutiny. More specifically, Glenwood should:
1. Retain a well-qualified medical director who would be responsible for maintaining a consistent level of adequate medical care throughout the facility.
2. Establish a formal medical peer-review system.
3. Establish a medical quality assurance program that:
(a) actively collects data relating to the quality of medical services;
(b) assesses these data for trends;
(c) initiates inquiries regarding problematic trends and possible deficiencies;
(d) identifies corrective action; and
(e) monitors to ensure that appropriate remedies are achieved.
4. Establish a system to track errors in the administration of medicine.
5. Establish uniform medical care policies and protocols to ensure the consistent provision of medical care.
6. Monitor and analyze facility-wide psychotropic medication use so that policies, procedures and drug prescribing practices can be based on reliable quantitative data.
This most recent report of hiring a physician unlicensed in Iowa and who reportedly failed to provide basic information to obtain his Iowa license, medical school grade reports; it would seem the Justice Departments recommendations aren’t being affectively implemented.
The Dominican Republic lists nine medical schools on Wikipedia.
Dominican Republic
The official website for Pontificia Universidad Catolica Madre y Maestra is in Spanish.