This one from Virginia has me scratching my head, wondering: How do you MISS something like this? Perhaps by not doing a very good job of examining the patient? Ya think?
In 2006, Virginia Vet Mark Johnstone saw a dog named "Tiki." Tiki had blood coming from both his nose AND his mouth. "Tiki was also recumbent [lying down] and had a foul odor coming from his mouth," the board document says.
After seeing Dr. Johnstone, Tiki "failed to improve," so his owner took him to another veterinarian. The second veterinarian saw that Tiki had "a stick wedged in his hard palate, between the right and left upper molars. Once the stick was removed, there was an ulcer present and a hold in the oral nasal cavity."
Stating the obvious, the vet board added:
"Dr. Johnstone failed to locate the stick during his physical examination of Tiki."
The Board found that Dr. Johnstone had violated regulations against unprofessional conduct, specifically that he had violated VAC 150-20-140(6) and (7). In finding that he had violated the latter provision, the Board found that he had "[Practised] veterinary medicine . . . in such a manner as to endanger the health and welfare of his patients or the public, or being unable to practice veterinary medicine . . . with reasonable skill and safety."
They ordered him to go back to school to learn how to give physical exams -- but just a 3 hour class.
That's it.
I'm a little baffled at how you don't look around in a dog's mouth to find that thing when he is bleeding and stinking from the mouth. ????
How DO you miss that?
Click here to read the order.
