McFadden v. MISS. STATE BD. OF MEDICAL

• Decision Date: 04 February 1999
• Docket Number: No. 97-CC-01410-SCT.,97-CC-01410-SCT.
• Citation: 735 So.2d 145
• Parties: John Wilbur McFADDEN, Jr., M.D. v. MISSISSIPPI STATE BOARD OF MEDICAL LICENSURE.
• Court: Mississippi Supreme Court

735 So.2d 145

John Wilbur McFADDEN, Jr., M.D. v. MISSISSIPPI STATE BOARD OF MEDICAL LICENSURE.

No. 97-CC-01410-SCT.

Supreme Court of Mississippi.

February 4, 1999.

Rehearing Denied April 15, 1999.

Alex A. Alston, Jr., Jackson, Attorney for Appellant.

Office of the Attorney General by Edwin Tharp Cofer, Attorney for Appellee.

BEFORE SULLIVAN, P.J., and McRAE and JAMES L. ROBERTS, Jr., JJ.

SULLIVAN, Presiding Justice, for the Court:

STATEMENT OF THE CASE

¶ 1. This is an appeal from the October 14, 1997, judgment of the Hinds County Chancery Court affirming the November 22, 1996, decision of the Mississippi Board of Medical Licensure suspending Dr. McFadden's medical license indefinitely but automatically staying the suspension subject to numerous probationary conditions that severely restrict, or in some circumstances, prohibit his privileges to prescribe controlled substances.

STATEMENT OF THE FACTS

1. Dr. McFadden

¶ 2. Dr. McFadden is a physician licensed to practice medicine in the State of Mississippi, currently holding License No. 05129. Dr. McFadden considers himself a specialist in the treatment of severe, chronic pain. He is a founding member of the Southern Pain Society and the American Academy of Pain Medicine. Dr. McFadden has written on the treatment of pain and has lectured in the United States and abroad on the subject.

2. Records Seized

¶ 3. In March 1996, investigators with the Board of Medical Licensure visited Dr. McFadden's clinic in Tupelo, Mississippi, in order to execute an administrative inspection and search warrant.. The search warrant, obtained pursuant to the Uniform Controlled Substances Act, Miss.Code Ann. § 41-29-101 et seq., permitted the investigators to obtain and review the medical records of selected patients under Dr. McFadden's care. Following routine prescription profiles of pharmacies in the Tupelo area, thirty six patients had been identified as receiving usually large quantities of controlled substances through prescriptions issued by Dr. McFadden. The investigator presented four of these patient files to the Board for review at the November 21 and 22, 1996 hearing on this matter. The patient files presented were those of Dwight Kee, Priscilla Lovelace, Jeffrey Gilmore, and Jackie Tate.

3. Background Facts

¶ 4. In its affidavit for the administrative inspection and search warrant, the Board asserted the following underlying facts establish probable cause for the March 1996 search and seizure of Dr. McFadden's patient files:

a. In March 1997, Dr. McFadden was investigated by the Board for issuing suspicious amounts of prescriptions for Codeine based products and diet pills.

b. In June 1987, he was investigated for excessive purchases of Schedule III controlled substances and issued a Letter of Admonition by the United States Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA) for numerous violations of state and federal controlled substance law.¹

c. In February, 1989, the Board received a complaint from the Amory, Mississippi Police Department concerning Dr. McFadden prescribing large quantities of Propoxyphene to known drug abusers in the Amory area.

d. In December 1991, pharmacy profiling by the Board documented suspicious quantities of Codeine, Hydrocodone and Propoxyphene prescriptions being issued by Dr. McFadden to patients in the Tupelo area. Many of these patients were suspected or known drug abusers.

e. In April 1992, investigators performed a review of selected patient files identified as receiving suspicious quantities of controlled substances prescriptions from Dr. McFadden. Seven patient medical files were reviewed. All patients were identified as having some type of drug use/abuse. Several patients were noted as receiving suspicious amounts of controlled substances for long periods of time. In addition, many of the prescriptions issued were not properly documented in the charts. Investigators also conducted a follow-up inspection to an audit and inspection performed by the Board and the DEA in 1988. As a result of this visit, the Board's previous Executive Officer Frank J. Morgan, Jr., M.D., contacted Dr. McFadden in writing warning him to properly document patient records and monitor patients who exhibit symptoms of chemical dependency. The letter also warned Dr. McFadden that his prescribing habits would continue to be monitored by the Board.

f. In April 1995, the Board was contacted by a member of the Lee County Sheriffs Department concerning Dr. McFadden issuing narcotic prescriptions to known drug abusers.

g. Also in April 1995, the Board was contacted by the Tupelo Police Department concerning a possible diversion of controlled substance samples from Dr. McFadden's clinic. Dr. McFadden was described as reluctant to cooperate with the police officers in their investigation of the theft.

4. The Complaint

¶ 5. The current charges against Dr. McFadden are set forth in an 11-count affidavit or complaint. Specifically, the Board charges Dr. McFadden with (1) failing to maintain complete records of examination, evaluation, and treatment of patients, including the alleged failure to document a diagnosis that would justify prescribing controlled substances; (2) prescribing controlled substances without a good faith examination of the patients; (3) prescribing addictive medications "otherwise than in the course of legitimate professional practice"; and (4) unprofessional conduct, including "conduct likely to deceive, defraud or harm the public."

5. The Board Hearing

¶ 6. On November 21 and 22, 1996, Dr. McFadden appeared before the Board. The Board's witnesses included the investigator, Mr. Thomas Washington, and a neurosurgeon, Dr. Bernard Patrick. After counsel for the Board rested, Dr. McFadden moved for a directed verdict, but his motion was denied. Dr. McFadden's witnesses included Dr. McFadden, Dr. George McGee, Dr. David McKellar, Dr. Daniel Brookhoff, and three of the four patients whose files were presented to the Board.

¶ 7. The testimony offered by the investigator, Mr. Washington, centered on a description of his search and a recitation of the information stated in the affidavit for administrative inspection and search warrant. On cross examination, Mr. Washington admitted he did not interview any of Dr. McFadden's patients and he did not speak with Dr. McFadden about any of his patients.

¶ 8. Dr. Patrick appeared as the Board's expert witness. Asked his opinion as to the proper management of chronic pain, Dr. Patrick stated he prefers to limit the patient's movement and, when necessary, use chronic medications preferably in the category of the nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory agents. Dr. Patrick further testified that patients who often have recurring exacerbations may require short term opioid² medications. He also stated that in his experience, patients with pain of spinal or vertebral origin seldom require the stronger opioid medications (such as Morphine and Demerol) and only then for a day or two. Dr. Patrick also testified that the overwhelming majority of patients who need short term opioid therapy can be treated with Codeine or Codeine-equivalent drugs such as Oxyhcodone and Hydrocodone. He added that it is quite rare that such patients require chronic opioid medications for a prolonged period of time. ¶ 9. Dr. McFadden testified that he regularly uses opioids in the treatment of patients with intractable pain. Dr. McFadden insisted that, contrary to what is charged in the complaint, he made a prior determination when nonaddictive substances would be effective. Dr. McFadden also stated that all medications were prescribed to his patients in the course of legitimate professional practice.

¶ 10. Dr. McGee, a general surgeon, serves on the Advisory Council for the American College of Surgeons, as Vice Chair of the Council on Managed Pain and Development, as Speaker of the House of Delegates at the Mississippi State Medical Association, and previously as Speaker of the House of Delegates for the American Society of General Surgeons. Dr. McGee described Dr. McFadden as a trustworthy physician who takes meticulous care of his patients.

¶ 11. Dr. McFadden also offered the expert testimony of Dr. McKellar, a pain medicine specialist. Dr. McKellar testified that he regularly prescribes opioids for patients in intractable pain. Dr. McKellar also testified that he had reviewed the four patient files at issue, and in his opinion, Dr. McFadden's prescription of controlled substances for these patients was done in the course of legitimate medical practice. Dr. McKellar further testified that his review of the patient files revealed that Dr. McFadden had carefully monitored these patients and that the patients appeared to have suffered no harm under Dr. McFadden's care. While Dr. McKellar admitted he had not examined these patients, he stated that a review of the four patient files indicated that Dr. McFadden's treatment and evaluation of these four patients was reasonable and that Dr. McFadden had conducted a good faith examination of these patients. Dr. McKellar also stated that he thought Dr. McFadden's level of referrals to other doctors for alternative treatments indicated an admirable level of professionalism.

¶ 12. Dr. Brookhoff, another pain medicine specialist, also testified on behalf of Dr. McFadden. Dr. Brookhoff is board certified in internal medicine and medical oncology. He conducts frequent seminars and other meetings on pain management, has published numerous medical journals, and has written several book chapters concerning the treatment and management of pain. Like Dr. McKellar, Dr. Brookhoff examined the four patient files at issue. Dr. Brookhoff testified that in his opinion, Dr. McFadden's treatment of these patients was "in the course of legitimate medical practice," and it did not appear that any of these patients suffered any physical harm as a result of the controlled substances prescribed by Dr. McFadden. Dr....