Summaries of Regents Actions
On Professional Misconduct and Discipline*
February 2001
Architecture - Certified Public Accountancy - Certified Social Work - Chiropractic - Dentistry - Medicine - Nursing - Pharmacy - Psychology - Veterinary Medicine
Architecture
John Saracco, Boonton, NJ
Profession: Architect; Lic. No. 018356; Cal.
No. 18941
Regents Action Date: February 6, 2001
Action: Application for consent order granted;
Penalty agreed upon: 24 month suspension, execution of last 18
months of suspension stayed, probation 24 months.
Summary: Licensee admitted to charge of having
been convicted of the crime Offering a False Instrument for Filing
in the Second Degree.
Certified Public Accountancy
Richard Marvin Levine, Plainview, NY
Profession: Certified Public Accountant; Lic.
(Cert.) No. 028326; Cal. No. 19123
Regents Action Date: February 6, 2001
Action: Application to surrender license (certificate)
granted.
Summary: Licensee admitted to charge of having
been convicted of Conspiracy to Commit Securities Fraud and to
Obstruct a SEC Investigation, and Obstruction of Justice, both
felonies.
Albert Paul Cappadozy, Gowanda, NY
Profession: Certified Public Accountant; Lic.
(Cert.) No. 027064; Cal. No. 18768
Regents Action Date: February 6, 2001
Action: Application for consent order granted;
Penalty agreed upon: Suspension for no less than 4 years and
until terminated as set forth in consent order application -
upon termination of suspension, probation 3 years to commence
upon return to practice.
Summary: Licensee admitted to charge of Driving
While Intoxicated, a class D felony.
Certified Social Work
Linda S. Smith, New York, NY
Profession: Certified Social Worker; Lic. No.
015932; Cal. No. 16985
Regents Action Date: February 6, 2001
Action: Application for consent order granted;
Penalty agreed upon: 2 year suspension, execution of suspension
stayed, probation 2 years, $2,500 fine.
Summary: Licensee admitted to charge of, on
more than one occasion, having overstepped the boundaries of
the professional relationship.
Gail Berman, Baldwin, NY
Profession: Certified Social Worker; Lic. No.
022250; Cal. No. 18371
Regents Action Date: February 6, 2001
Action: Application for consent order granted;
Penalty agreed upon: Suspension until terminated as set forth
in consent order application - upon termination of suspension,
probation 2 years, 50 hours of public service.
Summary: Licensee did not contest charge of
being present at her place of employment and working while impaired
by alcohol.
Chiropractic
Michael Loren Scarano, Ithaca, NY
Profession: Chiropractor; Lic. No. 008228; Cal.
No. 18431
Regents Action Date: February 6, 2001
Action: Application for consent order granted;
Penalty agreed upon: 2 year suspension, execution of last 18
months of suspension stayed, probation 2 years to commence upon
return to practice, $1,000 fine.
Summary: Licensee could not successfully defend
the charge of engaging in a sexual relationship with a patient.
Dentistry
Benjamin Van Acker, III, Rensselaer, NY
Profession: Dentist; Lic. No. 018283; Cal. No.
18394
Regents Action Date: February 6, 2001 (see also November
1999)
Action: Found guilty of professional misconduct;
Penalty: Revocation.
Summary: Licensee was found guilty of failing
to properly dispose of a used syringe and needle in his dental
office. Respondent was also found guilty of maintaining his office
in an unsafe and unsanitary condition, and found to have failed
to properly clean instruments prior to sterilization. Finally,
respondent was found to have failed to maintain compliance with
regulations and standards of care in the practice of dentistry.
Michael Allen Kole, Schenectady, NY
Profession: Dentist; Lic. No. 023821; Cal. No.
16700
Regents Action Date: February 6, 2001
Action: Found guilty of professional misconduct;
Penalty: 3 year suspension, execution of last year of suspension
stayed, probation 3 years.
Summary: Licensee was found guilty of having
performed root canals on teeth when it was not necessary, of
extracting teeth when it was not necessary and for violating
the terms of probation of Commissioner's Order No. 12341 by failing
to pay a fine.
Stanley Seung-Jin Ahn, Eastchester, NY
Profession: Dentist; Lic. No. 044475; Cal. No.
17738
Regents Action Date: February 6, 2001
Action: Application for consent order granted;
Penalty agreed upon: Censure and Reprimand, probation 1 year,
$1,000 fine.
Summary: Licensee did not contest charge of
failing to properly complete restorations and the removal of
caries in four teeth.
Stanley Seung-Jin Ahn, DDS, P.C., Medical Arts Building, 475 White Plains Road, Eastchester, NY 10709
Profession: Dentistry; Cal. No. 17739
Regents Action Date: February 6, 2001
Action: Application for consent order granted;
Penalty agreed upon: Censure and Reprimand, probation 1 year.
Summary: Respondent did not contest charge of
failing to properly complete restorations and the removal of
caries in four teeth.
Gregory William White, Buffalo, NY
Profession: Dentist; Lic. No. 045222; Cal. No.
18037
Regents Action Date: February 6, 2001
Action: Application for consent order granted;
Penalty agreed upon: 1 year suspension, execution of suspension
stayed, probation 1 year, $1,000 fine.
Summary: Licensee did not contest the charge
of failing to use precautionary measures while using a reamer
on a patient and failing to use a rubber dam in order to maintain
a sterile environment.
Raymond Anthony Flagiello, Staten Island, NY
Profession: Dentist; Lic. No. 040970; Cal. No.
18267
Regents Action Date: February 6, 2001
Action: Application for consent order granted;
Penalty agreed upon: 2 year suspension, execution of suspension
stayed, probation 2 years, $5,000 fine.
Summary: While treating a patient between 1989
and 1996, licensee did not contest charges of: failing to obtain
radiographs of sufficient quality and quantity; failing to address
a periodontal condition; treating less urgent problems without
treating a more serious condition involving large carious lesions;
filing teeth without having current periapical radiographs of
the affected teeth; utilizing bite-wing radiographs that failed
to show the bicuspids in their entirety; and failing to charge
the hard and soft tissues of a patient's periodontium, despite
the fact that the patient exhibited symptoms of periodontal disease.
Abbie Venus Lane, Brooklyn, NY
Profession: Dentist; Lic. No. 042030; Cal. No.
18544
Regents Action Date: February 6, 2001 (see also February
2003)
Action: Application for consent order granted;
Penalty agreed upon: 2 year suspension, execution of suspension
stayed, probation 2 years, $3,000 fine.
Summary: Licensee admitted to charge of failing
to maintain a record, that accurately reflected the treatment
of a patient.
Frederick A. Seltzer, East Rockaway, NY
Profession: Dentist; Lic. No. 033259; Cal. No.
18826
Regents Action Date: February 6, 2001
Action: Application for consent order granted;
Penalty agreed upon: 1 year suspension, execution of suspension
stayed, probation 1 year, $500 fine.
Summary: Licensee did not contest charge that
he made an upper denture for a patient that failed to occlude
properly with the lower partial denture.
Medicine
Paul Kevin Clarke, New Haven, CT, Mt. Vernon, NY, and Pelham, NY
Profession: Medicine; Lic. No. 164092; Cal.
No. 19162
Regents Action Date: February 6, 2001
Action: Found guilty of professional misconduct;
Penalty: Indefinite suspension as shown in report of the Regents
Review Committee.
Summary: Licensee was found guilty of being
in arrears of Child Support or combined Child Support and Spousal
Support in the amount of $76,995, an amount equal to or greater
than the current amount of current support for four (4) months.
Nursing
Darcy L. Pritchard, Castorland, NY
Profession: Licensed Practical Nurse; Lic. No.
226824; Cal. No. 18313
Regents Action Date: February 6, 2001
Action: Application to surrender license granted.
Summary: Licensee admitted to charge of having
been convicted of Criminal Sale of a Controlled Substance in
the Fifth Degree, a class D felony.
Catherine S. Thompson, Bay Shore, NY
Profession: Licensed Practical Nurse, Registered
Professional Nurse; Lic. Nos. 172422, 372636; Cal. Nos. 19026,
19027
Regents Action Date: February 6, 2001
Action: Application to surrender licenses granted.
Summary: Licensee did not contest the charge
of on one occasion giving a patient's physician incorrect information
about a patient, and on another occasion bringing a nasogastric
tube to be inserted into a patient, when she should have brought
a Dubhoff feeding tube.
Mariaelena Feliciano a/k/a Mariaelena Ortega-Feliciano, Corona, NY
Profession: Licensed Practical Nurse; Lic. No.
098983; Cal. No. 19085
Regents Action Date: February 6, 2001
Action: Application to surrender license granted.
Summary: Licensee admitted to charge of having
been convicted of Attempted Rape in the Third Degree, a class
A misdemeanor.
Christopher Patrick Wall a/k/a Christopher Wall, Bronx, NY
Profession: Licensed Practical Nurse; Lic. No.
239733; Cal. No. 18606
Regents Action Date: February 6, 2001
Action: Found guilty of professional misconduct;
Penalty: 2 year suspension, execution of suspension stayed, probation
2 years, $500 fine.
Summary: Licensee was found guilty of having
been convicted twice of the crime of Operating a Motor Vehicle
While Under the Influence of Alcohol, an unclassified misdemeanor.
Jerriann Marecek a/k/a Jerri Ann Marecek, Castle Creek, NY
Profession: Licensed Practical Nurse; Lic. No.
112205; Cal. No. 18611
Regents Action Date: February 6, 2001
Action: Found guilty of professional
misconduct; Penalty: 2 year suspension, execution of
last 18 months of suspension stayed, probation 2 years.
Summary: Licensee was found guilty of having
been convicted of the crime Grand Larceny in the Third Degree,
a class D felony.
Irene L. Purcell, Center Moriches, NY
Profession: Licensed Practical Nurse, Registered
Professional Nurse; Lic. Nos. 205663, 425783; Cal. Nos. 18212,
18213
Regents Action Date: February 6, 2001
Action: Application for consent order granted;
Penalty agreed upon: Suspension until terminated as set forth
in consent order application - upon termination of suspension,
probation 2 years.
Summary: Licensee admitted to charge of practicing
the profession while impaired by alcohol.
Melvena Riley-Baugh, Poughkeepsie, NY
Profession: Licensed Practical Nurse; Lic. No.
245821; Cal. No. 18309
Regents Action Date: February 6, 2001
Action: Application for consent order granted;
Penalty agreed upon: 24 month suspension, execution of last 22
months of suspension stayed, probation 2 years, $1,000 fine.
Summary: Licensee admitted to charge of practicing
as a registered professional nurse while she knowingly did not
possess a registered professional nursing license.
Lisa Margaret DiBona, Fairport, NY
Profession: Registered Professional Nurse; Lic.
No. 370044; Cal. No. 18592
Regents Action Date: February 6, 2001
Action: Application for consent order granted;
Penalty agreed upon: 24 month suspension, execution of last 21
months of suspension stayed, probation 2 years to commence if
and when return to practice, $2,000 fine.
Summary: Licensee admitted to charge of willful
failure to comply with substantial provisions of Federal and
State laws governing the profession of nursing.
Peggy Sue Skinkle; Auburn, NY
Profession: Registered Professional Nurse; Lic.
No. 463165; Cal. No. 18651
Regents Action Date: February 6, 2001
Action: Application for consent order granted;
Penalty agreed upon: Suspension for no less than 3 months and
until terminated as set forth in consent order application -
upon termination of suspension, probation 2 years to commence
upon return to practice, $500 fine.
Summary: Licensee admitted to charges of: failing
to disclose a criminal conviction on her application for licensure;
testing positive for the presence of alcohol in her blood while
at work; and failing to disclose reasons for leaving prior employment
on subsequent employment application.
Valerie Anne Bogan a/k/a Valerie Anne Thomas a/k/a Valerie Anne Plewes, Williamstown, NY
Profession: Licensed Practical Nurse; Lic. No.
229498; Cal. No. 18671
Regents Action Date: February 6, 2001
Action: Application for consent order granted;
Penalty agreed upon: 1 year suspension, execution of suspension
stayed, probation 1 year, $250 fine.
Summary: Licensee admitted to charge of having
been convicted of Driving While Intoxicated, a misdemeanor.
Anthony J. Izzo, Schenectady, NY
Profession: Registered Professional Nurse; Lic.
No. 369990; Cal. No. 18677
Regents Action Date: February 6, 2001 (see also May
2005)
Action: Application for consent order granted;
Penalty agreed upon: 2 year suspension, execution of suspension
stayed, probation 2 years, $500 fine.
Summary: Licensee admitted to charge of having
been found by the Commissioner of the Department of Health to
have unlawfully obtained and used the controlled substances Ativan,
Morphine and Sufentanil and, having obtained these controlled
substances by willfully falsifying patient and hospital records.
Jean M. Reynolds; Schenectady, NY
Profession: Licensed Practical Nurse; Lic. No.
182687; Cal. No. 18693
Regents Action Date: February 6, 2001
Action: Application for consent order granted;
Penalty agreed upon: 1 year suspension, execution of suspension
stayed, probation 1 year to commence upon return to practice,
$250 fine.
Summary: Licensee admitted to charge of making
multiple medication errors.
Geraldine Addona; Syracuse, NY
Profession: Licensed Practical Nurse, Registered
Professional Nurse; Lic. Nos. 134204, 480042; Cal. Nos. 18697,
18696
Regents Action Date: February 6, 2001
Action: Application for consent order granted;
Penalty agreed upon: 2 year suspension, execution of suspension
stayed, probation 2 years, $500 fine.
Summary: Licensee admitted to charge of willfully
intimidating a patient physically.
Mary L. Calladine, Tonawanda, NY
Profession: Registered Professional Nurse; Lic.
No. 414818; Cal. No. 18703
Regents Action Date: February 6, 2001
Action: Application for consent order granted;
Penalty agreed upon: 2 year suspension, execution of suspension
stayed, probation 2 years, $750 fine.
Summary: Licensee did not contest charge of
filing a false registration application and having been found
guilty of Driving While Intoxicated.
Daniel F. Webber, Gowanda, NY
Profession: Registered Professional Nurse; Lic.
No. 442253; Cal. No. 18731
Regents Action Date: February 6, 2001
Action: Application for consent order granted;
Penalty agreed upon: Suspension until terminated as set forth
in consent order application - upon termination of suspension,
probation 2 years to commence upon return to practice, $500 fine.
Summary: Licensee admitted to charge of having
been convicted of Driving While Intoxicated and failing to reveal
criminal convictions on his license application.
Crystal S. Richardson, Syracuse, NY
Profession: Registered Professional Nurse; Lic.
No. 479252; Cal. No. 18767
Regents Action Date: February 6, 2001
Action: Application for consent order granted;
Penalty agreed upon: 2 year suspension, execution of suspension
stayed, probation 2 years, $500 fine.
Summary: Licensee admitted to charge of willfully
intimidating a patient physically.
Colby Marie Cardone, Howard Beach, NY
Profession: Registered Professional Nurse; Lic.
No. 482288; Cal. No. 18779
Regents Action Date: February 6, 2001
Action: Application for consent order granted;
Penalty agreed upon: 2 year suspension, execution of suspension
stayed, probation 2 years, $1,000 fine.
Summary: Licensee admitted to charge of patient
abandonment, abandoning patients in need of immediate professional
care without making reasonable arrangements for the continuation
of such care.
Katherine Gail Sprague, Trenton, NJ
Profession: Registered Professional Nurse; Lic.
No. 494484; Cal. No. 18791
Regents Action Date: February 6, 2001
Action: Application for consent order granted;
Penalty agreed upon: 2 year suspension, execution of suspension
stayed, probation 2 years, $1,000 fine.
Summary: Licensee admitted to charge of failing
to indicate on her application for licensure and first registration
that she had been disciplined as a licensed practical nurse in
the States of New Jersey and Missouri.
Joy F. Hudson, Putnam Valley, NY
Profession: Registered Professional Nurse; Lic.
No. 264878; Cal. No. 18795
Regents Action Date: February 6, 2001
Action: Application for consent order granted;
Penalty agreed upon: 2 year suspension, execution of suspension
stayed, probation 2 years, $1,000 fine.
Summary: Licensee did not contest the charge
of administering a respiratory treatment to a patient when there
was no physician's order in effect.
Christopher Daniel Rodgers, Hicksville, NY
Profession: Registered Professional Nurse; Lic.
No. 484582; Cal. No. 18810
Regents Action Date: February 6, 2001
Action: Application for consent order granted;
Penalty agreed upon: Censure and Reprimand, $1,000 fine.
Summary: Licensee did not contest the charge
of practicing beyond the scope by administering the non-controlled
substance Lopressor to a patient when hospital policy prohibited
nurses on his unit from doing so.
Gretchen Mansell, Poughkeepsie, NY
Profession: Licensed Practical Nurse; Lic. No.
146775; Cal. No. 18821
Regents Action Date: February 6, 2001
Action: Application for consent order granted;
Penalty agreed upon: 10 year suspension with leave to apply for
early termination of suspension after service of the first five
years of said suspension as set forth in consent order application,
probation 2 years to commence if and when return to practice.
Summary: Licensee admitted to having been convicted
of Grand Larceny in the Third Degree, a class D felony.
Annamma M. John, Rosedale, NY
Profession: Registered Professional Nurse; Lic.
No. 260971; Cal. No. 18837
Regents Action Date: February 6, 2001
Action: Application for consent order granted;
Penalty agreed upon: Censure and Reprimand, $500 fine.
Summary: Licensee did not contest the charge
of administering more fluid to a patient then prescribed.
Denise Louise Wakula, Marathon, NY
Profession: Registered Professional Nurse; Lic.
No. 469982; Cal. No. 18850
Regents Action Date: February 6, 2001
Action: Application for consent order granted;
Penalty agreed upon: 1 year suspension, execution of suspension
stayed, probation 1 year, $500 fine.
Summary: Licensee admitted to charge of leaving
her assigned shift without authorization on more than one occasion
and failing to supervise unlicensed individuals.
Douglas Johnson, Cadyville, NY
Profession: Registered Professional Nurse; Lic.
No. 319602; Cal. No. 18854
Regents Action Date: February 6, 2001
Action: Application for consent order granted;
Penalty agreed upon: Suspension for at least three months and
until terminated as set forth in consent order application -
upon termination of suspension, probation 2 years to commence
upon return to practice, $250 fine.
Summary: Licensee admitted to charge of practicing
beyond the scope of nursing by diagnosing an injury and dispensing
medication, and to moral unfitness in the practice of nursing.
Nora Bridie Salmon, Patchogue, NY
Profession: Licensed Practical Nurse; Lic. No.
234472; Cal. No. 18877
Regents Action Date: February 6, 2001
Action: Application for consent order granted;
Penalty agreed upon: 2 year suspension, execution of suspension
stayed, probation 2 years, $250 fine.
Summary: Licensee admitted to charge of taking
a patient from her home and not returning said patient until
after her shift had ended and on another occasion removing a
bottle of Klonopin from the home of a patient without permission
or medical justification.
Rhyssa R. Miller, Oswego, NY
Profession: Licensed Practical Nurse; Lic. No.
255110; Cal. No. 18931
Regents Action Date: February 6, 2001
Action: Application for consent order granted;
Penalty agreed upon: 1 year suspension, execution of suspension
stayed, probation 1 year, $250 fine.
Summary: Licensee admitted to charge of failing
to check a patient's vital signs and creating false entries to
cover the error.
Frances V. Behnke a/k/a Frances V. Turbeville, Seneca Falls, NY
Profession: Licensed Practical Nurse, Registered
Professional Nurse; Lic. Nos. 116246, 291992; Cal. Nos. 19009,
18799
Regents Action Date: February 6, 2001
Action: Application for consent order granted;
Penalty agreed upon: 2 year suspension, execution of last 21
months of suspension stayed, probation 2 years to commence upon
return to practice, 50 hours of public service.
Summary: Licensee admitted to charge of having
been convicted of Driving While Intoxicated, a felony.
Pharmacy
Thomas H. Napolitano, Howard Beach, NY
Profession: Pharmacist; Lic. No. 030947; Cal.
No. 19154
Regents Action Date: February 6, 2001
Action: Application to surrender license granted.
Summary: Licensee admitted to charge of having
been convicted of Grand Larceny in the Fourth Degree.
Gary Grossman, Dix Hills, NY
Profession: Pharmacist; Lic. No. 040597; Cal.
No. 18122
Regents Action Date: February 6, 2001 (see also October
2001)
Action: Application for consent order granted;
Penalty agreed upon: 24 month suspension, execution of last 18
months of suspension stayed, probation 2 years, $2,500 fine.
Summary: Licensee did not contest charge of
permitting, aiding or abetting an unlicensed person to dispense
medication and admitted guilt to: holding for sale numerous outdated
drugs; failing to identify the generic drug dispensed by listing
the manufacturer on the label and prescription; maintaining records
that did not reflect the name of the pharmacist who dispensed
medications on a particular date; not possessing a biennial inventory
of controlled drugs in the pharmacy; having records of controlled
drugs purchased and dispensed that do not correlate; additionally,
the pharmacy routinely failed to offer counseling at the time
prescriptions were dispensed.
Duane Reade, Retail Pharmacy; 509 Fifth Avenue, New York, NY 10017
Profession: Pharmacy; Reg. No. 018613; Cal.
No. 18388
Regents Action Date: February 6, 2001
Action: Application for consent order granted;
Penalty agreed upon: $7,500 fine, probation 1 year.
Summary: Respondent admitted to charge of permitting
an unlicensed person to perform activities requiring a license.
Ted Karl Mitko a/k/a Thaddeus Mitko a/k/a Tadeusz Mitko, Holmes, NY
Profession: Pharmacist; Lic. No. 044578; Cal.
No. 18917
Regents Action Date: February 6, 2001
Action: Application for consent order granted;
Penalty agreed upon: 2 year suspension, execution of suspension
stayed, probation 2 years, $1,000 fine.
Summary: Licensee admitted to charge of having
been convicted of Driving While Intoxicated.
George A. Fredericks, Ballston Spa, NY
Profession: Pharmacist; Lic. No. 034081; Cal.
No. 18945
Regents Action Date: February 6, 2001
Action: Application for consent order granted;
Penalty agreed upon: $1,000 fine, probation 1 year.
Summary: Licensee did not contest the charge
of allowing the compounding and mixing of drugs by unlicensed
pharmacy technicians.
Jon F. Nolin, Cohoes, NY
Profession: Pharmacist; Lic. No. 031305; Cal.
No. 18946
Regents Action Date: February 6, 2001
Action: Application for consent order granted;
Penalty agreed upon: $1,000 fine, probation 1 year.
Summary: Licensee did not contest the charge
of allowing the compounding and mixing of drugs by unlicensed
pharmacy technicians and dispensing controlled substances for
prescriptions that lacked information.
Samaritan Hospital, Registered to operate a pharmacy; 2215 Burdett Avenue, Troy, NY 12180
Profession: Pharmacy; Reg. No. 005550; Cal.
No. 18947
Regents Action Date: February 6, 2001
Action: Application for consent order granted;
Penalty agreed upon: $5,000 fine, probation 1 year.
Summary: Respondent did not contest the charge
of allowing the compounding and mixing of drugs by unlicensed
pharmacy technicians and dispensing controlled substances for
prescriptions that lacked information.
Psychology
Lewis A. Forti, Buffalo, NY
Profession: Psychologist; Lic. No. 005947; Cal.
No. 18612
Regents Action Date: February 6, 2001
Action: Application for consent order granted;
Penalty agreed upon: Suspension for no less than 3 years and
until terminated as set forth in consent order application -
upon termination of suspension, probation 5 years to commence
upon return to practice.
Summary: Licensee admitted to charge of having
engaged in a sexual relationship with a client.
Joel Robert Gavriele-Gold, New York, NY
Profession: Psychologist; Lic. No. 007570; Cal.
No. 18840
Regents Action Date: February 6, 2001
Action: Application for consent order granted;
Penalty agreed upon: Censure and Reprimand, probation 1 year.
Summary: Licensee admitted to charge of failing
to maintain a record that accurately reflects the evaluation
and treatment of a patient.Veterinary Medicine
Michael Richard Irwin, Troy, NY
Profession: Veterinarian; Lic. No. 006546; Cal.
No. 18969
Regents Action Date: February 6, 2001 (see also February
1999)
Action: Application to surrender license granted.
Summary: Licensee did not contest the charge
of failing to apply an Elizabethan collar, failing to properly
supervise a dental cleaning, and failing to perform a diagnostic
test.
* Terms under which this information is provided.
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