FROM THE CARTER COUNTY TIMES

By Jeremy D. Wells

Carter County Times

The doctor serving as medical director for Carter County EMS has been accused by nursing staff and patients of a hospital in Louisa of inappropriate behavior with female patients. In addition, the staff at Three Rivers Medical Center accused the doctor of over prescribing sedative drugs to female patients, and taking a special interest in patients with a history of “sexually illicit behaviors,” among other incidents of questionable conduct.

Dr. Gregory Spears agreed to an order with the Kentucky Board of Medical Licensure (KBML) last month that stops short of suspending his license, but restricts his interaction with patients.

The agreement requires a board approved chaperone to be present during any sensitive examination of a patient, or any interactions with patients who are fully or partially disrobed. The chaperones must sign all medical logs related to these interactions, and Spears is also required to keep a list of any chaperones utilized and present them to the KBML upon request. These restrictions will remain in place indefinitely.

Spears is also required to, at his own expense, to perform a professional fitness for duty assessment, as well as to participate in a professional boundaries course.

These actions came after nursing staff at Three Rivers expressed several concerns about his conduct. These included, “the frequency and duration of his visits to female patients’ rooms,” the amount of the sedative Midazolam prescribed and the frequency it was prescribed to female patients, “the number of rectal exams performed on female patients,” and collecting a urine sample via catheter when the patient was able to walk.

In addition, they reported unprofessional comments about giving his wife “gummies” which allowed him to “do whatever I want, and she doesn’t even know,” and expressing a desire to administer Ketamine to his wife.Ketamine is a powerful sedative with a rapid onset that can cause temporary amnesia in those it is administered to. It has been described as a potential “date rape” drug in some literature.In his response to the complaints Spears dismissed the discussion of his wife as “guy talk” and claimed the Midazolam was used in agitated and violent patients who were exhibiting drug-seeking behavior.

Three patients of the hospital also issued complaints to Three Rivers over Spears’ conduct. One patient reported that Spears performed a pelvic exam with a nurse present before later returning and repeating the exam without gloves. She stated that Spears “molested her.”

Spears said he returned to the room to inform the patient she had either bed bugs or lice in her pubic area, and the patient wanted to retaliate against him for the unwelcome news.The grandmother of another patient, a 14-year-old girl, who presented with abdominal pain, alleged that Spears was pushing on her stomach “way below the panty line.”

A third patient, whose father brought their concerns to the attention of hospital staff, spoke with a staff member and revealed that Spears, “came into her room and took her panties down and kept rubbing her privates.”

Three Rivers Medical Center informed Spears via letter in August of the immediate termination of his clinical privileges and staff membership. He addressed the KBML panel on November 21, where he made the comments about violent drug seeking behavior leading to sedation and the “guy talk” statement. He only addressed one patient complaint, “stating that she was a known methamphetamine addict who would become violent if not provided with pain medication.”

It was not clear from the documentation if this was the same patient who accused Spears of performing a pelvic exam without a glove and who he claimed was retaliating because she was unhappy with his finding of bed bugs or pubic lice.

The KBML did find sufficient evidence to act against Spears by entering into an agreed order to restrict his ability to practice, which Spears acknowledged by signing the agreement. Spears, his counsel, the chair of the inquiry panel, and assistant general counsel of the KBML signed that agreement on December 6, and it was filed on December 12.

Spears reportedly held an in-person training at the Grayson station on December 19, nearly two weeks after entering into the agreement with the KBML. While nothing in the KBML agreement restricts Spears – whose medical specialty is emergency medicine – from conducting such trainings or serving in an advisory or directorate role, the same cannot be said for the Kentucky Board of Emergency Medical Services (KBEMS). The KBEMS requires a medical director to hold a current and unrestricted medical license in order to practice in state.

 While Spears does still have a medical license, the restrictions placed upon his license by the KBML might disqualify Spears from serving as the Carter County EMS medical director or performing the duties of that role.

Carter County EMS director Tim Woods confirmed on Monday afternoon that he had been informed of the restrictions on Spears license on Friday, December 27 – more than a week after Spears had completed the recent in-person training at the Grayson station and two weeks after the report was filed on December 12.

When asked if Spears would continue in his role as medical director for the ambulance service Woods said he had no further comment on the situation at this time.