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Wednesday, May 30, 2001
Copyright © Las Vegas Review-Journal COLUMN: John L. Smith Inmate's pain pales in comparison to what could be inflicted on taxpayers
It started as a pain in Forrest Humphrey's elbow. An inmate serving time for involuntary manslaughter at the Southern Nevada Correctional Center, Humphrey was treated by a prison physician, who passed the patient to Dr. Harriston Bass for further medical assessment. In the process, Humphrey's arm was left immobilized for 13 days, according to court documents filed by his attorney, Cal Potter. The alleged result: Humphrey suffered a "debilitating contracture of his elbow because of the injury and the subsequent immobilization." The case is pending in U.S. District Court. If you think the aches and injuries of a prison inmate are not your concern, think again. In a litigious society, and within the particularly litigious inmate subculture, it has the potential to cost taxpayers millions. Humphrey's federal lawsuit against the state of Nevada has placed a spotlight on the backgrounds of Dr. Bass and another physician who also has treated prisoners, Dr. James Potter. Both men are certified by the State Board of Medical Examiners despite their checkered careers. Bass is licensed as a general surgeon in Nevada, which has seen fit to forgive two incidents in which patients' deaths were linked to his "gross negligence" and "repeated malpractice." Bass was found guilty by the State Board of Medical Examiners of gross negligence in the care of a patient who died of complications from laparoscopic surgery for abdominal adhesions that he'd performed. He also was found guilty of malpractice in the treatment of a patient "who died from complications following surgery to repair an inguinal hernia." After revoking Bass' medical license, the state board stayed its decision and placed him on three years probation subject to a list of conditions. Bass unsuccessfully fought the board's decision on various legal grounds all the way to the state Supreme Court. Although the high court ruled against him in June 2000, its decision did nothing to slow his prison medical practice. Then there's Potter. By his estimation, he'd delivered 3,300 babies and performed hundreds of surgeries in a career spanning more than 25 years. He also was convicted in 1978 on 54 counts of issuing improper Quaalude and Dexedrine prescriptions for nonmedical use. In other words, Potter was convicted of playing Dr. Feel Good. At the time of his charges, he also was accused by the government of writing prescriptions in exchange for oral sex. He denied the allegation. His trial was messy stuff that made big headlines back in 1978. He was given probation and his medical license was revoked. Potter's case got stranger still in 1982 when Judge Joseph Pavlikowski later overturned the medical license revocation, ruling that the state board had lacked sufficient evidence to make its decision despite all those felony convictions. Wags in the press called Potter a drug dealer who had received special treatment because he pushed in a doctor's office and not on a street corner, but by 1988 all was forgiven and nearly forgotten. After agreeing to take a post graduate examination, Potter's medical license was reinstated in 1988. Except for a deposition in April 2000, in which he was implored to answer more questions about his license revocation, he practiced in near-anonymity. One reason for his low profile was his office address at Ely State Prison. Potter spent five years treating prisoners before entering semi-retirement. What does it all mean? Perhaps only that good help is hard to find, and few physicians are willing to medically treat the dregs of society. In that light, it's understandable the state would relicense men of the professional pedigree of Bass and Potter. But it also raises troubling questions about the state medical board. If these physicians are good enough to earn the Silver State's seal of approval, who isn't? Sooner or later, taxpayers figure to pay dearly for this lax system. This story started with a pain in Forrest Humphrey's elbow, but it's nothing compared to the agony Nevadans will feel if the actions of those doctors return to haunt a courtroom. John L. Smith's column appears Wednesday, Thursday, Friday and Sunday. E-mail him at Smith@lasvegas.com or call him at 383-0295.
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