Doctor Accused of Negligence Regains Medical License

Medical Malpractice - January 8, 2010

San Diego - A doctor who had been previously charged with medical malpractice lawsuits has regained his license but will be prohibited to perform surgeries and deliveries, according to a court ruling handed down Thursday by Judge James Ahler.

Andrew Rutland, an obstetrician-gynecologist from Anaheim city, surrendered his license in 2002 after being accused with several cases of negligence which resulted to the death of two babies and botched surgeries.

Rutland denied all the charges except in the case of a newborn baby who died after delivery by forceps.

Meanwhile, Rutland has filed a request to practice medicine again which has been granted by the medical board in 2007, prompting some of his former patients to bring the case to a federal court.

In an interview, Kathy Broussard, the mother whose newborn child died after being delivered by Rutland, said she was disappointed with the medical board and the court’s decision, adding that the victims and the public will “not have a peace of mind” since the doctor is still “allowed to perform gynecological exam and consultation.” In July 2009, Rutland performed a second-trimester abortion to an unidentified woman in his San Gabriel clinic.

According to the medical board’s investigation, the patient struggled to breathe after Rutland injected a local anesthetic to her cervix. The doctor performed CPR to the patient but did not give her oxygen, the legal documents stated. In the documents, the medical board said there was a “significant delay” for the 911 call and that the “woman was already in cardiac arrest when paramedics arrived.”

The patient was brought to the hospital but died six days later. Heart attack caused by “lidocaine toxity” was cited in her autopsy. Aside from negligence, Rutland has also been accused of performing surgeries without malpractice insurance and practicing in an unlicensed office.