The ongoing saga of Connecticut dentist Rashmi Patel, DDS, continued on Tuesday when Dr. Patel turned himself in to authorities after being charged with a misdemeanor count of criminally negligent homicide and a felony count of tampering with evidence.
Dr. Patel's lawyer, Paul Knag, says his client disputes the charges and that they should be dropped, according to an Associated Press story.
Dr. Patel had his license suspended in December by the Connecticut State Dental Commission. Knag, however, stated that the commission decided not to revoke Dr. Patel's license and experts have testified that standards of care were followed.
Dr. Patel improperly cared for 64-year-old Judith Gan in February 2014, when he was to extract 20 teeth and perform six implants, the commission found. It ruled that Dr. Patel failed to properly respond to Gan's decreasing oxygen levels after her teeth extractions, respiratory distress, and cardiopulmonary distress. She later died at a hospital.
The commission also found that Dr. Patel should not have attempted to perform so many procedures on Gan in one office visit, given her medical history and the medications she was taking.
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