UCSF hires cleared doctor
Neurologist will run Fresno center after charges dropped.

By Barbara Anderson / The Fresno Bee
09/03/08 23:07:56
The hiring of a North Carolina doctor to lead a new neurology center at UCSF-Fresno is back on track now that he has been cleared of charges of inappropriate behavior with medical students.

The University of California at San Francisco delayed a decision on a faculty appointment for Dr. Jeffrey Rosenfeld in May after allegations were raised that he had performed inappropriate examinations of three female medical students in 2007.

But Rosenfeld has been exonerated and has accepted the job as chief of neurology for the Central California Faculty Medical Group, the teaching staff for the Fresno campus of the university, said Joan Voris, UCSF-Fresno associate dean.

"I think he has a lot to offer from a clinical standpoint for Fresno in terms of building neurology services, which is an area of extreme shortage here in the Valley," Voris said Tuesday.

In a July 11 consent order, the North Carolina Medical Board dropped all charges against Rosenfeld, including a charge that he had conducted medical exams of students for his "own personal gratification."

The board did reprimand Rosenfeld, saying "it is not common practice in academic medicine" for a supervisor to perform an exam of a student, and that the behavior could be misinterpreted. But it said the examinations could have "some educational benefit," and cited Rosenfeld's "long-standing record of quality care" and the high esteem in which he was held by peers and patients.

Voris said UCSF-Fresno agreed to proceed with hiring Rosenfeld after "much discussion," and "we'll be observing and monitoring his activities as we would with any new faculty person."

Rosenfeld, who moved to Fresno last week, said Wednesday that he contended from the beginning that he had done nothing wrong, and the North Carolina medical board's decision "was certainly both confirming and gratifying."

His attention can now turn to building the UCSF-Fresno neurology program, he said. The university has made a "very significant commitment to the development of neurology and neurosciences on the UCSF-Fresno campus," he said.

Rosenfeld has a history of building strong neurology programs, Voris said.

Rosenfeld is an expert in amyotrophic lateral sclerosis, or Lou Gehrig's disease. At the time of the misconduct allegations in 2007, he was chairman of the neurology department at the Carolinas Medical Center in Charlotte, N.C.

Since arriving in Fresno, Rosenfeld said he has been doing administrative work while he waits to receive a California medical license. Rosenfeld said he expects to receive the license soon.



The reporter can be reached at banderson@fresnobee.com

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