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| Rhode Island Department of Health |
3 Capitol Hill
Providence, RI 02908
Phone: (401) 222-2231
Fax: (401) 222-6548
711(TTY) |
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Media Release
For: Immediate Release
Date: August 26, 2002
Contact: Bruce McIntyre, JD
Legal Counsel, Board of Medical Licensure and Discipline
(401) 222-3855
Catherine Cordy, RPh..
Chief, Board of Pharmacy (401) 222-2840
Department Of Health Suspends Physician’s License For Endangering Patients
FACT SHEET
Earlier today, August 26, Director of Health Patricia A. Nolan, MD, MPH, issued a Summary Suspension of the medical license of Wallace E. Gonsalves, Jr., DO, for endangering the lives of his patients. His offices are located on Broad Street in Cranston.
Under State Law §5-37-8, the Director of Health may suspend a physician’s license for endangerment provided a hearing be held before the Board of Medical Licensure and Discipline within ten days. HEALTH shares the investigation with the Office Of the Attorney General, the Federal Food and Drug Administration, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention and the U.S. Immigration and Naturalization Service (INS). HEALTH cited five different areas in the Summary Notice delivered to Dr. Gonsalves today:
- Possessing expired, misbranded and adulterated pharmaceutical samples. When HEALTH checked one full refrigerator at Dr. Gonsalves’ office on August 16, only two currently dated immunization vials were found. The remaining contents were out-of-date or adulterated.
- Expired pharmaceutical included non-steroidal anti-inflammatories, oral contraceptives, bronchodilators, anti-hypertensives, and prescription antacids.Expired and misbranded vaccines included for yellow fever, chickenpox, Hepatitis B, polio, mumps-measles-rubella (MMR), diphtheria-pertussis-tetanus (DPT), HIB titer, and immuno-globulin.
- Adulterated vaccines including MMR, pneumonia, chickenpox, cholera, and adulterated material for testing tuberculosis and tetanus.
- Reporting negative results for HIV and syphilis testing on physicals performed for the INS without taking the blood samples and/or not submitting them to HEALTH for testing. Forty-three such incidents have been documented for the years 2002-2001. Dr. Gonsalves may have signed the necessary forms without performing any exam.Giving the MMR vaccine to infants at inappropriate ages. One infant received the first dose of the vaccine at four months, another at 11 months. To avoid possible conflict with the temporary immunities most babies have at birth, the National Academy of Pediatrics suggests infants receive first vaccine at 12 to 18 months. Both children have been located and are healthy. Blood titers will be performed to ensure each child develops appropriate antibody levels.Vaccine reports are also missing, inadequate or invalid for at least three pediatric patients including the two previously mentioned.
- Numerous cases of writing prescriptions for narcotics inappropriately. Prescriptions did not match diagnosis; refills were issued too frequently and/or continued for too long a period of time without consultation with the second physician.
Any patient who had seen Dr. Gonsalves in the past year and has questions about his or her care should contact HEALTH’s Family Information Line at 1-800- 942-7434 for more details. Both Spanish and English speaking information specialists are available.
Immigration status is not at risk for anyone receiving examinations or immunizations from this physician.
Click for a list of INS-approved doctors and facilities for immigration medical exams
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