Patient Claims Doctor Groped Her and Had a History of It

3-28-2017 19:26:00

UPPER MARLBORO, Md. (CN) – A woman claims a doctor groped her during a medical examination, in a lawsuit filed in Prince George’s County Circuit Court.

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E. F. sued Mid-Atlantic Permanente Medical Group PC dba Kaiser Permanente Kensington Medical Center, Kaiser Foundation Health Plan of the Mid-Atlantic States, and Bryan S. Williams, M.D.

E. F. says she went to Dr. Williams in late November 2013 for lower back pain. At the beginning of the exam, Dr. Williams told her to lie face down on the exam table and pull down her pants, which she did.

The complaint states:

"Dr. Williams, without plaintiff's consent or clinical justification, squeezed plaintiff's upper legs and lower buttocks with his hands and moved his hands between plaintiff's legs.

"Dr. Williams, without Plaintiffs consent or clinical justification, then moved his fingers near plaintiff's vagina and anus. Dr. Williams continued to rub and squeeze the area between Plaintiff's inner thigh and vagina."

E. F. claims Kaiser should have known not to leave Dr. Williams alone with female patients, as several had reported similar cases of sexual misconduct before her appointment with him.

Due to these reports Kaiser eventually fired Williams in October 2014, but it was too late to protect her and the other female patients he abused, E. F. says.

Since Kaiser did not act sooner, E. F. now has mental and emotional distress and has had to have extensive counseling to help her heal from being sexually assaulted by Dr. Williams, according to the complaint.

E. F. seeks punitive damages, compensation for her physical, mental, and emotional injuries, and reimbursement for medical expenses.

She is represented by John Harnishfeger with the Cochran Firm of Washington D.C.