Liposuction Doctor Faces Florida Review

Irvine plastic surgeon W. Earle Matory Jr., whose California medical license was revoked last week because of the death of a liposuction patient, now faces possible similar discipline in Florida, where he also is licensed, a spokesman there said Tuesday.

“We’re going to take a look at it,” Florida Board of Medicine spokesman David Adams said.

Under Florida law, any doctor holding a state medical license there must inform the Board of Medicine within 30 days of disciplinary action taken in another state, said spokesman David Adams.

The Florida board then reviews the case and takes action, which in 90% of the cases mirrors the other state’s discipline, Adams said.

Florida licensing officials now will wait to see whether Matory complies with the law and notifies them before proceeding further, he said.

The Medical Board of California last Wednesday revoked the licenses of Matory, 47, and anesthesiologist Robert K. Hoo for their treatment of Judy Fernandez of La Habra. She bled to death in March after Matory removed 8.7 liters (9.2 quarts) of fat during liposuction and performed a mini-face lift, a brow lift, and a laser resurfacing of her face.

The decision came after a 26-day trial before an administrative law judge, who criticized Matory for ignoring signs that the patient was deteriorating midway through the 10 1/2-hour surgery.

Matory’s lawyer, Lloyd Charton, has said the plastic surgeon will appeal. He also predicted that Matory will practice medicine again. He could not be reached for comment Tuesday.

The medical board’s action was entered into a national data bank to which all licensing agencies have access. In addition, Judy Fernandez’s husband, Ruben, personally has sent thick packets of information about the California decision, including the judge’s entire 63-page report, to all licensing agencies in an effort to prevent Matory from practicing elsewhere.

Adams of the Florida medical board said Matory originally received his license there on Nov. 8, 1995, and recently renewed it. It is valid through Jan. 31, 2000.

If Matory does not notify Florida authorities within 30 days “then our people will call and check on him,” Adams said. In any event, he said, licensing authorities are now aware of Matory’s case.

Matory earned his medical degree at Howard University in Washington, D.C., and practiced for many years at a Harvard-affiliated hospital in Massachusetts. He moved to California in 1995.

Charles Moore of the Massachusetts Board of Medicine said Matory did not renew his license there when it expired on Nov. 20, 1995.

However, he said, the board in the past has taken action even against physicians not currently licensed by revoking their right to renew their license, if they have been disciplined elsewhere. No such action has been taken as of yet in Matory’s case, he said.

While Matory has never been disciplined in Massachusetts and has no record of complaints to the medical board there, Moore said four malpractice lawsuits were filed against Matory between 1989 and 1994. Massachusetts law requires courts to notify the medical board of malpractice suits, he said, but he did not know the outcome or status of the suits.

Matory is facing a spate of unresolved lawsuits in Orange County Superior Court. A 10th malpractice suit was filed Wednesday--the same day the medical board revoked his license--by former patient Connie Belisle. According to her lawsuit, Belisle underwent her first treatment in November 1995 and discovered in December 1996 that she suffered damage to her thighs, hips, buttocks, eyes and brow.