"ENT Doctor" accused of faking residency documents for licensure in 3 states

[xffan624]

Maryland Board of Medicine complaint

Originally licensed in 2013 in Alabama.

TLDR: He only completed less than 1 year of residency after being dismissed for professionalism concerns from a program in Georgia and falsified his residency paperwork on licensure, credentialing including impersonating the program director using a false e-mail address and forging his signature on paperwork. Also impersonated American Board of ENT staff as well. Finally got caught during credentialing at a hospital in Sarasota. A quick google finds he actually had a malpractice suit against him Alabama that went to the Supreme Court of Alabama recently.

It seems crazy to me that he was able to practice for 10 years without getting caught, but I guess (hope?) he wasn't maiming people like Dr. Dunsch.

I assume the forgery and falsification will result in criminal charges as well.

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[ThoracicGuy]

Maryland Board of Medicine complaint

Originally licensed in 2013 in Alabama.

TLDR: He only completed less than 1 year of residency after being dismissed for professionalism concerns from a program in Georgia and falsified his residency paperwork on licensure, credentialing including impersonating the program director using a false e-mail address and forging his signature on paperwork. Also impersonated American Board of ENT staff as well. Finally got caught during credentialing at a hospital in Sarasota. A quick google finds he actually had a malpractice suit against him Alabama that went to the Supreme Court of Alabama recently.

It seems crazy to me that he was able to practice for 10 years without getting caught, but I guess (hope?) he wasn't maiming people like Dr. Dunsch.

I assume the forgery and falsification will result in criminal charges as well.

Looking at his information, apparently he did training in Egypt prior to coming to the US, so at least he is supposed to have known what he is doing.

Amazing that he lasted this long through multiple states before he was caught.

 

[shaggybill]

Crazy story. What a shame. Apparently he had some skills. I can't imagine come from Egypt and landing a residency but getting kicked out for professionalism issues. He clearly has other issues.

New ENT on staff in Opp - The Andalusia Star-News

"Farrag completed his residency at the Medical College of Georgia, and his fellowship in head and neck cancer surgery and facial plastic and head and neck reconstructive surgery at Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine. Farrag said he was trained in plastic surgery but only works on reconstructive surgery, like facial and nasal traumas."

 

[xffan624]

Crazy story. What a shame. Apparently he had some skills. I can't imagine come from Egypt and landing a residency but getting kicked out for professionalism issues. He clearly has other issues.

New ENT on staff in Opp - The Andalusia Star-News

"Farrag completed his residency at the Medical College of Georgia, and his fellowship in head and neck cancer surgery and facial plastic and head and neck reconstructive surgery at Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine. Farrag said he was trained in plastic surgery but only works on reconstructive surgery, like facial and nasal traumas."

Shame about the not finishing residency back in 2011, but the falsification and forgery is something that's just blatantly bad. If he lied about that, who's to say what else he lied about? Did actually he go to Johns Hopkin Medicine? That's what's listed on the public bios I could find on the website. How could get a fellowship with a falsified residency record? This guy could be the George Santos of medicine.

Here's this guy also giving out ivermectin in York, Pennsylvania to a COVID patient in 2021. Strange....

 

[shaggybill]

Shame about the not finishing residency back in 2011, but the falsification and forgery is something that's just blatantly bad. If he lied about that, who's to say what else he lied about? Did actually he go to Johns Hopkin Medicine? That's what's listed on the public bios I could find on the website.

His Florida license says he completed an ENT residency in Assiut (Egypt) 2000-2004, was at John Hopkins for "post-doctoral research" 2004-2009, then has him down for ENT residency at Medical College of GA 2009 - 0001. Strange indeed.

https://mqa-internet.doh.state.fl.u...rofilePrintFriendly?LicInd=119900&ProCde=1501

 

[operaman]

Well I always wondered how closely they read all those docs I sent in for licensing and credentials. Now I know!

Yeah this guy is clearly hosed from multiple angles. And yet another but of evidence that there really is something to “professionalism” concerns. There are quite a few papers that show students and trainees who get into trouble also tend to be the same attendings who have trouble later on.

 

[Splenda88]

Looking at his information, apparently he did training in Egypt prior to coming to the US, so at least he is supposed to have known what he is doing.

Amazing that he lasted this long through multiple states before he was caught.

I think he lasted that long because of his prior training in Egypt. There is no way a PGY1 dropout ENT would have been able to pull that off. A surgical, sub-surgical specialty PGY1 drop out knows nothing.

 

[dozitgetchahi]

Maryland Board of Medicine complaint

Originally licensed in 2013 in Alabama.

TLDR: He only completed less than 1 year of residency after being dismissed for professionalism concerns from a program in Georgia and falsified his residency paperwork on licensure, credentialing including impersonating the program director using a false e-mail address and forging his signature on paperwork. Also impersonated American Board of ENT staff as well. Finally got caught during credentialing at a hospital in Sarasota. A quick google finds he actually had a malpractice suit against him Alabama that went to the Supreme Court of Alabama recently.

It seems crazy to me that he was able to practice for 10 years without getting caught, but I guess (hope?) he wasn't maiming people like Dr. Dunsch.

I assume the forgery and falsification will result in criminal charges as well.

Having worked in Alabama before, I can say that I am not surprised in the slightest that Alabama was the first to license this guy. Alabama medicine was a total ****show, and the medical board seemed to do very little to regulate it. There was a doctor in Huntsville that basically dealt drugs and ran a brothel out of his house, and it took something like 5 years and dozens of police visits to his house before they yanked his license.

 

[xffan624]

Full story in Alabama board of medicine documents. Good read if you like court documents.

TLDR; Basically got in trouble with ENT residency in GA for professionalism issues. Got recommended for dismissal and then got second chance after appeal that he screwed up by running a red light and then lying to a police officer about a medical emergency (?). Clocked 3 1/2 years there but only got credit for PGY1 year. Then proceed to apply to medical board in Alabama and supplied false residency verification document. Didn't get caught until he submitted a residency verification document to Sarasota hospital that was so bizarre (honestly read the actual court doc if nothing for that) that it prompted them (I'm presuming) to contact the residency PD directly and confirm he wrote it. And then everything unraveled.

 

[Crayola227]

Full story in Alabama board of medicine documents. Good read if you like court documents.

TLDR; Basically got in trouble with ENT residency in GA for professionalism issues. Got recommended for dismissal and then got second chance after appeal that he screwed up by running a red light and then lying to a police officer about a medical emergency (?). Clocked 3 1/2 years there but only got credit for PGY1 year. Then proceed to apply to medical board in Alabama and supplied false residency verification document. Didn't get caught until he submitted a residency verification document to Sarasota hospital that was so bizarre (honestly read the actual court doc if nothing for that) that it prompted them (I'm presuming) to contact the residency PD directly and confirm he wrote it. And then everything unraveled.

Yeah there is something to be said the real red flags aren't running a red, BAC > 0 < legal limit, nodding off once, unreachable for plausible reason of equipment malfunction..... but dishonesty. A shame too when you realize how many times more honest folks don't get as fair a shake sometimes.

Although I hate to note that I've always thought it was rather draconian that those who are fully trained in other countries (even such as the UK) have to complete an entire residency here in the US to practice. I understand concerns about FMGs but I feel like it would be of benefit to have some other system that could fast track somehow.

Before someone says, but competition, frankly if we have a shortage of providers such that PAs and NPs are taking over everything, I would probably take the fully trained dude from Egypt over that. You know, if he wasn't a liar.

I'm not justifying this dude, but I do recognize the pressures FMGs are under.

 

[operaman]

Oh wow what a piece of work! I’d forgotten about this dude!

I can’t see the Maryland link anymore, but from the Alabama page it seems the thing that got him caught was the verification letter from his PD that he forged. His over the top effusive praise for himself with poor English seems to have raised suspicions in the Sarasota hospital which sent them back to his PD asking for verification. That’s what seems to have started the unraveling. If he could have just kept the comments short and generic it probably would have sailed through without any more due diligence.

Clearly this guy has a screw loose but I do kinda feel for him a bit. I would struggle a bit to redo residency especially someplace where they manage things very differently from what I did in training or do now in practice. I would naturally go in feeling like it was merely a formality and that I would be treated as an equal by faculty. Inevitably that would not be the case. I think I could play the game and get through it if I had to, but it would be tough.

 

[xffan624]

Oh wow what a piece of work! I’d forgotten about this dude!

I can’t see the Maryland link anymore, but from the Alabama page it seems the thing that got him caught was the verification letter from his PD that he forged. His over the top effusive praise for himself with poor English seems to have raised suspicions in the Sarasota hospital which sent them back to his PD asking for verification. That’s what seems to have started the unraveling. If he could have just kept the comments short and generic it probably would have sailed through without any more due diligence.

Clearly this guy has a screw loose but I do kinda feel for him a bit. I would struggle a bit to redo residency especially someplace where they manage things very differently from what I did in training or do now in practice. I would naturally go in feeling like it was merely a formality and that I would be treated as an equal by faculty. Inevitably that would not be the case. I think I could play the game and get through it if I had to, but it would be tough.

Lots of foreign docs have come over here and done it successfully. It's the price for practicing over here. I understand it's a challenge but there's such variability in standards and medical practice internationally that I also understand the requirement. There's probably an easier way that these could be ensured but the requirement also is a gatekeeper for protecting US doctors from a hypothetical flood of international doctors coming and lowering salaries overall.

I think it's clear this gentlemen had some serious character deficiencies that were flagged in residency. Then he doubled down by lying about the residency. If you read the court documents, he continued to deny culpability (which I guess was probably his only play), but the Board did not find his denials credible.

 

[j4pac]

Lots of foreign docs have come over here and done it successfully. It's the price for practicing over here. I understand it's a challenge but there's such variability in standards and medical practice internationally that I also understand the requirement. There's probably an easier way that these could be ensured but the requirement also is a gatekeeper for protecting US doctors from a hypothetical flood of international doctors coming and lowering salaries overall.

I think it's clear this gentlemen had some serious character deficiencies that were flagged in residency. Then he doubled down by lying about the residency. If you read the court documents, he continued to deny culpability (which I guess was probably his only play), but the Board did not find his denials credible.

The problem is that he could have easily had those same concerns in Egypt in either med school or residency but he was never screened out because the standards are different. Professionalism concerns don’t usually arise out of thin air.

 

[comp1]

I think there might be some leeway for reducing training of long term practitioners in other countries that have substantially similar training to the US (this would not include Egypt to the best of my understanding). Even in the closest cases though, that's some leeway, not literal equivalence. I tend to think the medical training in the US is the most rigorous and stringent in the world and by far the most handsomely rewarded for completion. Am I wrong to think that? Now you could argue it's TOO rigorous and stringent to balance out clinical care needs for US patients, but that's a slightly different question. I believe learning how the US healthcare system works in specific is by far the most important part of residency and something you literally will not get training on anywhere else in the world, nor is it at all easy to learn. I genuinely believe the average US trained NP has a better understanding of that then the average graduate of a foreign medical school.

 

[brazilianpsych]

I think there might be some leeway for reducing training of long term practitioners in other countries that have substantially similar training to the US (this would not include Egypt to the best of my understanding). Even in the closest cases though, that's some leeway, not literal equivalence. I tend to think the medical training in the US is the most rigorous and stringent in the world and by far the most handsomely rewarded for completion. Am I wrong to think that? Now you could argue it's TOO rigorous and stringent to balance out clinical care needs for US patients, but that's a slightly different question. I believe learning how the US healthcare system works in specific is by far the most important part of residency and something you literally will not get training on anywhere else in the world, nor is it at all easy to learn. I genuinely believe the average US trained NP has a better understanding of that then the average graduate of a foreign medical school.

You are wrong into thinking training in the US is better than the rest of the world. I guarantee you there are better residencies programs in a lot of countries. I do agree with the rest, tho. I believe training in the US is helpful to learn the culture, laws, and rules required to practice. Not sure if requiring full training is the best option, since it could be done faster.

 

[comp1]

Which countries, on average, have more rigorous and stringent training than the US? I'm sure you can compare outliers of best and worst in terms of quality of training at specific programs, but I just don't think there are any countries that are as strict and intensive as the US. I know Canadian stuff can be harder to get into because of just a smaller pool, but I don't really consider that since there is a great deal of reciprocity with Canadian training. I actually think the US's rigorous nature might be a bit of a hinderance in terms of getting care out to most of the population.

 

[brazilianpsych]

Which countries, on average, have more rigorous and stringent training than the US? I'm sure you can compare outliers of best and worst in terms of quality of training at specific programs, but I just don't think there are any countries that are as strict and intensive as the US. I know Canadian stuff can be harder to get into because of just a smaller pool, but I don't really consider that since there is a great deal of reciprocity with Canadian training. I actually think the US's rigorous nature might be a bit of a hinderance in terms of getting care out to most of the population.

I mean, I have no idea about the residency training in all the countries around the world. But it is kinda crazy to simply assume USA has the best training in the world just because. A lot of people outside the US do not like Americans exactly for this line of thinking.

A good chunk of training in the US is learning about billing, coding, US laws, FDA, etc. This is only useful in the US. For reference, I don't think the average psych residency in the US is good. I would not be surprise if the average psych residency in many countries is better.

 

[RangerBob]

I mean, I have no idea about the residency training in all the countries around the world. But it is kinda crazy to simply assume USA has the best training in the world just because. A lot of people outside the US do not like Americans exactly for this line of thinking.

A good chunk of training in the US is learning about billing, coding, US laws, FDA, etc. This is only useful in the US. For reference, I don't think the average psych residency in the US is good. I would not be surprise if the average psych residency in many countries is better.

A lot of people dislike Americans for many reasons. Americans (and much of the world) dislike the French because... well, they're French. People have all sorts of reasons to dislike others.

(In all fairness, many countries that aren't the US dislike the French because of their colonial history... and their "outrageous accent!")

I don't believe most programs here actually teach much about billing/coding/FDA/laws.

Most of what I know about the FDA I learned from my dad, who worked with the FDA on a lot of projects. We had a lecture that went over how drug trials are conducted and how medicines go from a theory to something testable to something the FDA eventually approves. Was maybe 1-2hrs total?

Billing/coding? Not a mention of either in medical school. Maybe a total of 2-3 hours in residency over my 5 years of training?

Nowhere near a "good chunk." Even docs I spoke with that got more training in these things have never suggesting anything close to approaching a "good chunk" was spent learning about these things. They all spent more time learning the Krebs Cycle.

It only takes a few hours to learn to bill/code. I taught myself the remainder of all I needed to know in about two hours.

 

[Mass Effect]

I mean, I have no idea about the residency training in all the countries around the world. But it is kinda crazy to simply assume USA has the best training in the world just because. A lot of people outside the US do not like Americans exactly for this line of thinking.

A good chunk of training in the US is learning about billing, coding, US laws, FDA, etc. This is only useful in the US. For reference, I don't think the average psych residency in the US is good. I would not be surprise if the average psych residency in many countries is better.

Why do you say that? FTR, I learned zip about billing, coding or the FDA in my US residency.

 

[Smurfette]

Yeah, there was no billing and coding in my residency. And as far as learning it in 2 hours....I still get messages from the coders about things I screw up and the weird exceptions, oddball global periods, things that can be billed during a global period, etc.

 

[comp1]

Residencies can and should teach about billing and coding. That's inappropriate if they are not.

 

[xffan624]

While I think overarching reasons for this guy to do this are interesting, a more significant element of this that I thought was interesting was how easy it was for Tassig to forge his residency documents and then subsequently get licensed in multiple states after getting licensed in one. It's something I actually thought about as I filled out my paper documents for my medical license and corralled one of my former PD's to complete the verification paperwork (also a paper document). Given the current implications of the IMLC and how many states that opens up to practice it seems like there should be a standardized and more robust way to verify your residency documentation. Thankfully due to his prior residency he had (some) competency. At least enough not to kill any patients (that we know about). But an unscrupulous impostor could do a lot of damage with a little knowledge of the system.

 

[brazilianpsych]

Why do you say that? FTR, I learned zip about billing, coding or the FDA in my US residency.

Just overall feeling from most professionals I've met. Most programs seem to only be worried about running the machine. I also think the us system make people had at making diagnosis because you can't just take your time. You need a diagnosis to get meds, so they just keep getting added in the pt history and no one cares much.

You guys never heard "what is FDA approved for X?" or similar discussions? Never did any paperwork required in your state? Maybe we just have very different experience then.

 

[ThoracicGuy]

Just overall feeling from most professionals I've met. Most programs seem to only be worried about running the machine. I also think the us system make people had at making diagnosis because you can't just take your time. You need a diagnosis to get meds, so they just keep getting added in the pt history and no one cares much.

You guys never heard "what is FDA approved for X?" or similar discussions? Never did any paperwork required in your state? Maybe we just have very different experience then.

I didn't have any coding or billing talks during my time in training.

 

[LucidSplash]

I had billing and coding education but only informally from an attending (one each in residency and fellowship) who had an especial interest. The residency guy because they were private practice and eat what you kill. The fellowship guy because he had an academic interest of sorts.

But most people I’ve met had zero such education and all of those I’ve met who did had it informally only.

 

[operaman]

I got very little billing/coding in residency. I self taught quite a bit for a QI project as a resident, and then in fellowship I really started learning. One of my mentors was a master at it and got me interested.

Then I took it upon myself to figure out the tricks for billing well in my field, so I started looking up publicly available salary data for every attending in my field. Then I took the few highest paid and looked up their Medicare billing data and figured out how they make 2-3x what other docs in similar jobs do. Learned a ton this way, and learned the rest when a couple of those top paid docs sent patients my way and I got access to their notes and templates which I summarily yoinked.

CMS keeps changing the rules and code values so it’s an ongoing process. Im not sure how valuable it is to learn this in residency when you’re still just learning the medical side of things, but definitely needs to be a priority for either end of training or early attendinghood to learn it.

We work very hard and billing/coding is how we get paid for the work we do.

 

[The kitchen sink]

I got very little billing/coding in residency. I self taught quite a bit for a QI project as a resident, and then in fellowship I really started learning. One of my mentors was a master at it and got me interested.

Then I took it upon myself to figure out the tricks for billing well in my field, so I started looking up publicly available salary data for every attending in my field. Then I took the few highest paid and looked up their Medicare billing data and figured out how they make 2-3x what other docs in similar jobs do. Learned a ton this way, and learned the rest when a couple of those top paid docs sent patients my way and I got access to their notes and templates which I summarily yoinked.

CMS keeps changing the rules and code values so it’s an ongoing process. Im not sure how valuable it is to learn this in residency when you’re still just learning the medical side of things, but definitely needs to be a priority for either end of training or early attendinghood to learn it.

We work very hard and billing/coding is how we get paid for the work we do.

Where do you find this publicly available specialty data specific information?

 

[operaman]

Well many attendings at major academic centers are at least partly employed by government and you can find their salaries on various state government websites or even some media sites that track it. Then so you can sometimes get lucky if the doctors are paid highly enough to get listed on their hospital form 990. In other cases, the physician groups themselves are separate non profit entities and also file form 990s and will list a lot of salary data.

So it’s not perfect and omits many folks, but for me this gave me pretty clean data in that I was looking for compensation primarily from clinical revenue rather than ancillary research funding or PP groups who sell hearing aids and run surgery and imaging centers.

Then you can also look through Medicare billing data as this too is public record. It’s a clunky database so it’s often faster to get started using some group that makes it easier to search. Propublica had a free access version back when I was doing this. But it showed me what codes they were billing and how often they were billing them. Only for Medicare patients obviously, but that’s a big enough sample for my needs. Probably can’t do this for Peds specialties!

The findings were pretty incredible though and I learned a TON about coding and billing. Now I’m one of the highest paid docs at my institution. The admins are now asking me to teach other docs how to do what I do, or at least help them stop doing some of the stupid things they’re doing. It’s definitely worth making an effort to get good at this early on. It always hurts to learn some new coding trick and realize how much money you left on the table the year before!

 

[rokshana]

Residencies can and should teach about billing and coding. That's inappropriate if they are not.

Have you done residency? They don’t.

 

[comp1]

Have you done residency? They don’t.

Yes and ad hominem aside, that's not true. A National Survey of Medical Coding and Billing Training in United States Dermatology Residency Programs - PubMed

 

[LucidSplash]

Yes and ad hominem aside, that's not true. A National Survey of Medical Coding and Billing Training in United States Dermatology Residency Programs - PubMed

This is one specialty. This discussion has been about residency in general, across all specialties. Posting this paper does not prove the point you are trying to make.

 

[NotAProgDirector]

Have you done residency? They don’t.

We absolutely teach residents about billing and coding.

In continuity clinic, residents are responsible for picking their own codes.

For those going into Hospital Medicine, we focus on it in the PGY-3 during HM specific rotations.

I am honestly surprised if most programs don't include this somewhere. #Sad

 

[Splenda88]

We absolutely teach residents about billing and coding.

In continuity clinic, residents are responsible for picking their own codes.

For those going into Hospital Medicine, we focus on it in the PGY-3 during HM specific rotations.

I am honestly surprised if most programs don't include this somewhere. #Sad

My residency did not do that. I am not sure it's common for IM residency either.

 

[dozitgetchahi]

We absolutely teach residents about billing and coding.

In continuity clinic, residents are responsible for picking their own codes.

For those going into Hospital Medicine, we focus on it in the PGY-3 during HM specific rotations.

I am honestly surprised if most programs don't include this somewhere. #Sad

In residency and fellowship, I was indeed “responsible for picking my own codes” but was given little to no instruction in how to properly do so, how to bill most effectively, etc etc etc. So I knew practically nothing about how to properly do it by the time I became an attending.

 

[EMhawkeye]

How did this thread completely change topic?

 

[LucidSplash]

How did this thread completely change topic?

Welcome to SDN. Your first time? 🤣🤪

 

[VA Hopeful Dr]

Yes and ad hominem aside, that's not true. A National Survey of Medical Coding and Billing Training in United States Dermatology Residency Programs - PubMed

I'm sure there's a joke in here about of course dermatology residencies hit coding/billing pretty well...

FM programs are supposed to have 1 hour of "business of medicine" lectures per month. Ours was weak enough that I took it upon myself to do a yearly 99213 v. 99214 lecture my 2nd and 3rd years there.

 

[HemeOncHopeful19]

We absolutely teach residents about billing and coding.

In continuity clinic, residents are responsible for picking their own codes.

For those going into Hospital Medicine, we focus on it in the PGY-3 during HM specific rotations.

I am honestly surprised if most programs don't include this somewhere. #Sad

0/2 for me but I tried to pay attention to it myself

Also if your docs don’t get a significant production component of their pay then chances are they don’t care to learn much about billing and aren’t good to learn from in my n=2 experience

 

[dozitgetchahi]

0/2 for me but I tried to pay attention to it myself

Also if your docs don’t get a significant production component of their pay then chances are they don’t care to learn much about billing and aren’t good to learn from in my n=2 experience

That too. I’m not sure the attendings knew any better about how to do it than I did.

 

[gutonc]

0/2 for me but I tried to pay attention to it myself

Also if your docs don’t get a significant production component of their pay then chances are they don’t care to learn much about billing and aren’t good to learn from in my n=2 experience

Agreed here. I am glad (and not surprised) to hear that @NotAProgDirector 's program provides billing/coding education to their residents. And I certainly hope it's becoming more common, but I can say that neither my residency or fellowship provided any such training. One of my co-fellows and former colleagues who did his residency at a different, blue chip, institution, still (a decade in to practice) asks me billing/coding questions even though we no longer work together.

 

[rokshana]

We absolutely teach residents about billing and coding.

In continuity clinic, residents are responsible for picking their own codes.

For those going into Hospital Medicine, we focus on it in the PGY-3 during HM specific rotations.

I am honestly surprised if most programs don't include this somewhere. #Sad

Sorry, but your program is the exception not the rule… we were supposed to have a month long selective in 3rd year on the business of medicine but it really was about to weeks di to changes in the program and really didn’t cover billing and coding.

 

[NotAProgDirector]

This thread makes me sad.

That is all.