Patient Safety | 07.30.21
Doctor Fired from Green Bay VA Clinic for Unprofessional Conduct
by Seehafer News (07/08/21) Brahm, Ryan
Dr. Annette Stokes has been fired from the Green Bay VA Clinic after an investigation by the Wisconsin Medical Examining Board determined that she gave patients a controlled weight-loss drug called phentermine without first entering the information into the state’s Prescription Drug Monitoring Program. This is a breach of protocol, as physicians are required to enter such data to help quell the state's prescription drug abuse problem. Phentermine can be addicting and easily abused because of the short amount of time it's supposed to be prescribed. Stokes reportedly started dispensing it two years ago, but concerns by co-workers yielded no formal probe. Stokes insists she never compromised patient care, describing her performance at the VA Clinic “exemplary and without complaints" citing her annual performance reviews.
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