The director of the State Medical Board of Ohio is responding to allegations of the board not doing enough to protect people from sexual abusers despite a history of doctors preying on patients.
An investigation into doctor sexual abuse by the Columbus Dispatch found at least 256 Ohio physicians have been disciplined by the medical board for sexual misconduct since 1980.
Medical board director Stephanie Loucka said the board will be adding additional investigators, as well as enforcement attorneys to the staff to better address and resolve complaints of sexual misconduct.
The board will also be issuing a public information campaign explaining how to reach the board and how victims can access confidential services.
"We stand ready. we have a history over the past few years of taking quick action on those complaints and really making sure that that the public understands that we cant take action if we don't know about those complaints," Loucka said.
The board is expecting an uptick in complaints as the public hears more about the investigation and Loucka said they are ready to take quick action.
"For the number of citations that we've issued for sexual misconduct, those have increased by more than nine times since 2019. So this board is (I think the data shows) and the public can see that the data shows this board is very active in discipline," Loucka said. "So the more that we are explaining to individuals that we are going to take action, that we take these very seriously, and that there are laws to protect people from these types of things, the more complaints should come forward."
Reform to better protect patients from sexual misconduct did not proceed in 2022 but may be reintroduced this session at the Statehouse.