The Florida Board of Medicine has placed a physician in Tampa, Fla., on probation following an administrative complaint at an ASC, Miami Herald reported Aug. 14.
Ishwari Prasad, MD, faces an administrative complaint from the Florida Department of Health. According to the report, Dr. Prasad uses hearing aids but wasn't wearing them during two colonoscopies he was in charge of June 23.
During one or both of the procedures, according to the report, the surgical team was unable to effectively communicate with Dr. Prasad. During the first, Dr. Prasad improperly delegated to a surgical tech for a task that required a medical license.
During the second colonoscopy, Dr. Prasad began inserting the scope before the patient was sedated and "did not immediately stop the procedure when it became apparent that the patient was not fully sedated. [Dr. Prasad] failed to realize that the patient was not fully sedated due to [Dr. Prasad’s] failure to wear" his hearing aids, according to the report.
Dr. Prasad was also fined $7,500, must pay $6,301 in Florida Department of Health case costs and take a five-hour continuing medical education course in laws, rules and ethics before Aug. 7, 2025.
To regain clearance to perform procedures solo, he must be evaluated for his competency and do at least 10 gastroenterology procedures under the supervision of a physician engaged in GI procedures and certified by the American Board of Internal Medicine. The supervisor will make a recommendation to the probation committee whether Dr. Prasad can go back to working alone.