A hearing-impaired doctor is facing disciplinary action for failing to hear a patient’s screams during a colonoscopy, the Miami Herald reported, citing the Florida Board of Medicine.
Dr. Ishwari Prasad, a Tampa-based gastroenterologist, was placed on probation by the Florida Board of Medicine following incidents during two colonoscopy procedures, according to the Miami Herald. The incidents, which occurred June 5, 2023 at the Ambulatory Surgery Center, have raised concerns about patient safety and procedural adherence, according to the outlet.
A Florida doctor without his hearing aid couldn’t hear his colonoscopy patient scream https://t.co/M9uwURPIL1
— Miami Herald (@MiamiHerald) August 14, 2024
Prasad, who relies on hearing aids, went through the procedures in question without them, causing communication issues with his surgical team, the Miami Herald reported. The Florida Department of Health administrative complaint reportedly cites the breakdown in communication as a contributing factor towards several procedural errors.
In the first incident, Prasad allegedly delegated critical tasks such as scope insertion and manipulation to a surgical tech unlicensed for medical procedures, the outlet reported.
In the second incident, Prasad reportedly prematurely inserted the scope before the patient was fully sedated, causing the patient to scream in pain. The complaint emphasizes Prasad did not immediately stop the procedure and failed to recognize the patient’s distress, linking the result to his choice to not wear his hearing aids, the outlet reported. (RELATED: Dental Staff Caught Allegedly Mocking Cancer Patient’s Diary In Disturbing Video)
In this picture taken on December 9, 2022, thoracic surgeon Thomas Charrier (2ndR) from the Foch hospital in Suresnes outside Paris, gives on the phone a transplantation green light to his colleagues in Suresnes after assessing the lungs of a deceased patient (Photo by CHRISTOPHE ARCHAMBAULT/AFP via Getty Images)
In response to the incidents, the state’s Board of Medicine imposed sanctions on Prasad: a requirement to pay $6,301 in case costs to the Florida Department of Health plus a $7,500 fine, as well as having to complete a five-hour continuing medical education course focused on laws, rules and ethics by Aug. 7, 2025, the Miami Herald reported.
Prasad is also prohibited from performing any gastroenterology procedures independently until he undergoes a competency evaluation by one of several approved programs, such as the University of Florida’s Florida Comprehensive Assessment and Remedial Education Services Program, UC San Diego Program of All-Inclusive Care for the Elderly (PACE) or the Center for Personalized Education for Professionals, the outlet stated. Alternatively, he must perform at least 10 supervised gastroenterology procedures, including five colonoscopies, under the oversight of Dr. John Delgado, a board-certified gastroenterologist.
