ARIZONA MEDICAL BOARD

FISCAL YEAR 2005-2006
ANNUAL REPORT

9545 East Doubletree Ranch Road
Scottsdale, Arizona 85258
(480) 551-2700 or toll-free (877) 255-2212
www.azmd.gov

TABLE OF CONTENTS
Letter to the Governor, Janet Napolitano …………………………………………..……….. Page 2
.
ARIZONA MEDICAL BOARD
Board Membership ………………………………………………………………………….. Page 3
Board Accomplishments …….……………………………………………………………… Page 7
Licensing ……………………………………………………………………………...……… Page 8
Regulation ………….………………………………………………………………………… Page 9
Adjudication ………………………………………………………………………….……… Page 10

Page 1

LETTER TO THE GOVERNOR
JANET NAPOLITANO

Governor
Janet Napolitano

Members of the Arizona Medical Board
Robert P. Goldfarb, M.D., FACS
Chair/Physician Member
William R. Martin, III, M.D.
Vice Chair/Physician Member
Douglas D. Lee, M.D.
Secretary/Physician Member
Patrick N. Connell, M.D., FACEP
Physician Member
Patricia R. J. Griffen
Public Member
Tim B. Hunter, M.D., FACR
Physician Member
J. Becky Jordan
Public Member
Ram R. Krishna, M.D.
Physician Member
Lorraine L. Mackstaller, M.D.
Physician Member
Sharon B. Megdal, Ph.D.
Public Member
Dona Pardo, Ph.D., R.N.
Public Member/R.N.
Paul M. Petelin, Sr., M.D.
Physician Member

Executive Staff
Timothy C. Miller, J.D.
Executive Director
Amanda J. Diehl, M.P.A., C.P.M.
Deputy Executive Director
Bernadette E. Phelan, Ph.D.
Assistant Director
Roger Downey
Media Relations Officer

D

ear Governor Napolitano:

On behalf of the Arizona Medical Board, I submit to
you the 2006 Annual Report. In fiscal year 2006, the Board took
on the ambitious task of redesigning the entire investigative process. The new investigative process streamlines investigations,
creates efficiencies, reduces the caseload and maintains the high quality of the
investigations. For all of 2006 the average number of days to complete a complaint investigation decreased from 201 days to less than 180 days. The Board
also reduced the caseload from a high of 1,243 to 422 cases and maintained the
high quality of the investigations.
The Board improved on its record of processing an initial medical license application or a license renewal application. During the 2006 fiscal year,
the renewals were completed in less than two days. Routine applications took an
average of 44 days for the Board to receive all the required paperwork and two
days to process the application. The Board issued 1,429 new licenses — an increase of more than 11% over 2004-2005. The Board finished the year with
18,186 licensed physicians.
The Board created a Physician Health Program that aims to assist physicians who have a health issue that may affect the ability to practice safely. Since
its creation at midyear, 25 physicians are actively participating in the program.
There are 93 physicians in the Board’s Monitored After Care Program. This
program monitors physicians who have an alcohol or substance abuse problem.
The rate of participation success in the program is 94% with a 6% relapse rate.
The rate of recidivism for participants in the program was a very low 4%.
In FY 2006, the Board asked customers to rate the investigation processes. The public and the licensees’ responses reflect the quality of the staff’s
hard work. Eighty-six percent of the responding customers were satisfied with
Board Staff and the investigation process. Consistent performance by the Licensing Division was responsible for a high licensee satisfaction rating of 99% in
2006. The Board expects to achieve the same high ratings for fiscal year 2007.

Sincerely,

Timothy C. Miller
Executive Director

Page 2

ARIZONA MEDICAL BOARD MEMBERSHIP
Robert P. Goldfarb, M.D., FACS, the
Board’s Chair, graduated from Tulane University,
School of Medicine and practices in a Tucson,
Arizona NeurosurgeryNeurology specialty group
and serves as President of
the group practice. Dr. Goldfarb also is the Neurosurgical
Consultant to the University
of Arizona Athletic Teams
and is a Clinical Associate
Professor in the Department
of Surgery, College of Medicine at the University
of Arizona. Dr. Goldfarb completed his Internship at Michael Reese Hospital and Medical Center in Chicago and his Residency in Neurological
Surgery at the University of Illinois Hospitals and
Presbyterian-St. Luke’s Hospital in Chicago. He is
certified by the American Board of Neurological
Surgery and is a Fellow of the American College
of Surgeons. He has previously served as Chief of
the Medical Staff at Tucson Medical Center and is
a past member of the Board of Trustees at El
Dorado Hospital and a member of several professional societies including the American Association of Neurological Surgeons (Harvey Cushing
Society), Congress of Neurological Surgeons,
American Medical Association, North American
Spine Society, Arizona Medical Association and
the Pima County Medical Society.
William R. Martin, III, M.D., the
Board’s Vice Chair, is an Orthopedic Surgeon at
Copper State Orthopedics, Ltd., Phoenix, Arizona and serves as medical
director for Urgent Care +,
LLC in Phoenix. In addition
to his busy private practice, he
helps to provide specialized
Orthopedic services for Children’s Rehabilitative Services
(CRS), the Veteran’s Administration (VA) Hospital, and the
American Indian population. Dr. Martin is a

founding member of the Dr. Charles E. Gavin
Memorial Foundation and serves on the Board of
Directors of many public and private organizations. Dr. Martin has been a member of the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People since 1973. He is a member of the
American Academy of Orthopaedic Surgeons, the
American Medical Association, the Arizona Medical Association, the Arizona Orthopaedic Association, the Maricopa County Medical Society,
and the Western Orthopaedic Association. Dr.
Martin received his medical degree from Loyola
University of Chicago in Maywood, Illinois.

Douglas D. Lee, M.D., the Board’s
Secretary, is a Board certified anesthesiologist
practicing in Flagstaff, Arizona. He graduated
from the University of Arizona School of Medicine,
completed an internship at the
National Naval Medical Center in Bethesda, Maryland and
a residency at the Naval Regional Medical Center in San
Diego, California. From 1980
to 1981, Dr. Lee was a United
States Marine General Medical Officer in Okinawa, Japan, and he was also a reservist called to
serve in the Desert Shield/Desert Storm 1st Marine Division from 1990 to 1991. In addition to
his professional experience, Dr. Lee is a member
of the Arizona Society of Anesthesiologists and a
member of the American Board of Anesthesiologists. He previously served as the Chairman of
Anesthesia for the Flagstaff Medical Center
(FMC), President of the FMC Medical Staff, and
President of the Arizona Society of Anesthesiologists. He currently serves as a Staff Anesthesiologist at FMC and Managing Partner of Forest
County Anesthesia, PC. He is also a Board Member of the FMC Ambulatory Surgery Center and a
member of the FMC Credentials Committee.

Page 3

ARIZONA MEDICAL BOARD MEMBERSHIP
Patrick N. Connell, M.D., has recently
retired from a full-time active urban emergency
department practice. He currently is working part
time in the Pediatric Emergency Department at Maricopa
Medical Center, and as a volunteer physician in Central
America.
Dr. Connell has
worked with the American
College of Emergency Physicians as a member of their
Practice Management Committee and assisted in policy development for the
College. He is a past president of the Arizona
College of Emergency Physicians and has served
on their Board for ten years. Dr. Connell has
been a Fellow of the American College of Emergency Physicians since 1983. Dr. Connell received his medical degree at the University of Arizona and performed his residency in surgery at
University Hospital in Tucson.
Patricia R. J. Griffen, a public member
of the Board, is the founding Executive Director
of Against Abuse, Inc., established in October
1981 to provide domestic violence and child abuse shelter
services to the citizens of Pinal
County.
She received her
Bachelor of Science Degree in
Social Administration from the
University of Arizona, Tucson.
Ms. Griffen has more than 35
years experience in the field of
private, non-profit management. This includes
her role as a founding member of Arizona Coalition Against Domestic Violence and formerly
serving as a member of the organization’s Board
of Directors. She is a State and local speaker on a
wide range of domestic violence and child abuse
issues and administered a smoking cessation program. Ms. Griffen has developed a Community

Partnership To Reduce Teen Pregnancy Program
(CPRTP), established three shelters and seven
transitional living programs, and founded Big
Brothers/Big Sisters of Western Pinal County as
well as a day care center for high school students.
Ms. Griffen is currently the Secretary of the Pinal
County Victim Compensation Program, the Chair
of the City of Casa Grande Personnel Advisory
Board, the Chair of the Desert Pavilion Advisory
Board, and the Chair of the Pinal County Federal
Credit Union Supervisory Council. She is a member of the RTA Hospice Foundation Board of
Directors as well as a sustaining member of the
Casa Grande Regional Medical Center Auxiliary.

Tim Hunter, M.D., FACR, is a tenured
professor and Vice-Chairman of the Department
of Radiology at the University of Arizona. Previously, he served as chief of
staff of University Medical
Center and was the founder
and first director of the Tucson Breast Center. Featured
in “Who’s Who in Medicine
and Healthcare,” Dr. Hunter,
along with two other physicians, was awarded a patent
for a digital mammography apparatus. A prolific
author and speaker, Dr. Hunter is a Fellow of the
American College of Radiology (FACR). Dr.
Hunter received his medical degree at Northwestern University in Chicago. He completed his internship at Wayne County General Hospital in
Eloise, Michigan; his residency in diagnostic radiology at the University of Michigan; and his fellowship at the University of Arizona in Tucson.

Page 4

ARIZONA MEDICAL BOARD MEMBERSHIP
Becky Jordan, a public member of the
Board, served in the United States Air Force for
twenty years. She retired in 1977 with the rank of
major. In 1992, Ms. Jordan
was elected State Representative for District 16, a seat she
held for two terms. While in
the State Legislature, Ms. Jordan served as chair of the
Natural Resources and Agriculture Committee. During her
distinguished military career,
she received the USAF Commendation Medal
with one Oak Leaf Cluster, the USAF Outstanding Unit Award with three Oak Leaf Clusters, the Republic of Vietnam Campaign Medal,
the Vietnam Service Medal with for Bronze Service Stars, and the Meritorious Service Medal.
Other honors include the University of Arizona
Alumni Association Distinguished Citizen Award
and the American Legion Distinguished Legislator Award. Ms. Jordan received a bachelor of arts
in chemistry from Queens College in Charlotte,
North Carolina, and a bachelor of science in animal science from the University of Arizona with
additional postgraduate coursework in animal
physiology.
Ram R. Krishna, M.D., is an orthopedic surgeon who is currently in private practice in
Yuma and was formerly the chief of surgery at
Yuma Regional Medical Center. Dr. Krishna served as
chair of the Yuma Regional
Medical Center Board of Trustees and as president of the
Yuma County Medical Society.
Currently, he is a member of
the Arizona Orthopedic Society and the Arizona Medical
Association. Dr. Krishna was awarded the Arizona Medical Association’s Distinguished Service
Award in 2000 for his exceptional work in the
community.

He obtained his medical degree from Bangalore
University Medical College in Bangalore, India.
He did his internship, a one-year residency in general surgery and a four-year residency in orthopedics at the University of Massachusetts Medical
Center.

Lorraine Mackstaller, M.D., began her
medical career as a Registered Nurse at St. Joseph’s Hospital in Phoenix, and then thirty years
later earned her M.D. at the
University of Arizona in Tucson. She performed her residency in internal medicine at
the University of Arizona and
is currently on staff at the Sarver Heart Center in Tucson. She is Board certified in
internal medicine and specializes in cardiovascular disease. She has served on the Board of the American Heart Association, the Sarver Heart Center
Advisory Board, the University Heart Center
Board, the National Scientific Internal Medicine/
Family Practice Advisory Board, the Hilton Head
Health Institute, and the Arizona Commission on
Women’s Health. Dr. Mackstaller has taught
classes at the University of Arizona College of
Medicine, lectured on women’s health and heart
issues, and authored numerous medical journal
articles. In 2003, Dr. Mackstaller received the
Patients’ Choice Award from the University
Medical Center in Tucson. The YWCA presented
her with the “Women on the Move” award in
2006.

Page 5

ARIZONA MEDICAL BOARD MEMBERSHIP
Sharon B. Megdal, Ph.D., a public
member of the Board, serves as Director of the
Water Resources Center, as well as Professor and
Specialist of the Department
of Agricultural and Resource
Economics at the University
of Arizona. Her work focuses on water resources
management and policy. She
has been a member of the
Arizona Corporation Commission and served as the
Chair of the Arizona Joint Select Committee on
State Revenues and Expenditures. In 1997 Dr.
Megdal completed a six-year term on the Arizona
State Transportation Board, serving as the board’s
Chair during the last year of her term. Dr. Megdal has been a member of the Board of Trustees
of TMC Healthcare and the Board of the Arizona
Hospital and Healthcare Association. She served
as Co-Chair of the Governor’s Transportation
Vision 21 Task Force and was a member of the
Governor’s Water Management Commission and
the Arizona Water Quality Appeals Board. Dr.
Megdal received her doctor of philosophy degree
in economics from Princeton University, with a
specialization in public sector economics and
econometrics.
Dona Pardo, R.N., Ph.D., a public
member of the Board, has over thirty years experience in nursing education and has taught in
diploma, associate degree,
baccalaureate degree and
continuing education programs. She recently retired
from the University of Arizona after 21 years of service
during which she taught baccalaureate nursing students,
headed the Continuing Education program in the College of Nursing, and just prior to retirement was

the Administrator, Continuing Education for the
Arizona Health Sciences Center. In her last position, she was responsible for Continuing Education for physicians and nurses. Dr. Pardo is an
active member of the community as the 2nd Vice
President for Compass Health Care, and founding
Foundation Director and current Treasurer for
Tucson Nurses Foundation, a non-profit organization established to formally celebrate Nurses
Week in the Tucson area. Dr. Pardo earned her
master’s degree in nursing from the University of
Texas Health Sciences Center at San Antonio and
holds a doctorate in higher education from the
University of Arizona.

Paul M. Petelin, Sr., M.D., is a Board
certified surgeon in private practice in Phoenix.
He received his medical degree from Creighton
University School of Medicine in Omaha, Nebraska.
Dr. Petelin completed his
internship and residency at
St. Joseph’s Hospital and
Maricopa Medical Center in
Phoenix. From 1984 to
1988 and again from 2000
to 2004, he was Chief of
Surgery at St. Joseph’s Hospital. He is the governor of the State of Arizona American College of
Surgeons and a member of the Board of Directors of the Phoenix Surgical Society. He also
serves on the Board of Directors of the Arizona
Medical Association. His other professional society memberships include: Maricopa County Medical Society, American Society of General Surgeons, American Hernia Society, Phoenix Society
of Gastroenterology, and Creighton University
Surgical Society.

Page 6

BOARD ACCOMPLISHMENTS
The Arizona Medical Board began the year with a renewed sense of purpose
to resolve a large caseload, averaging 201 days to complete an investigation. The
Board ended the 2005-2006 fiscal year with a much smaller caseload, averaging 178
days to complete an investigation.
The Board’s team of professional investigators managed to complete the older cases and at
the same time manage the daily addition of new
cases. In the process, investigators maintained the
quality of the investigations, as well as the standards of fairness, accuracy, and thoroughness.
The average number of days to complete
an M.D. case remained at 201. However, during
the first half of the calendar year 2006, the Board
consistently averaged below its goal of 180 days.
The Board successfully launched its Physician Health Program (PHP) in 2005-2006. The
PHP evaluates, treats and monitors physicians and
physician assistants with medical, psychiatric, psychological, and behavioral health disorders that
impact a licensee’s ability to safely practice medicine or perform healthcare tasks.

The Monitored Aftercare Program (MAP)
that currently monitors licensees with substance
abuse and chemical dependency problems continues
to grow with a nine-fold increase in the number of
referrals.
The Board produced its new quarterly
newsletter, “Primum” - the first word in the Latin
form of the Hippocratic Oath, “First, do no harm.”
The newsletter is one method for the Board to
reach out to the community. The Board also uses
pamphlets that explain the “Adjudication Process”
and the “Call to Public” portions of its regular
Board meetings.
Board personnel were visible in the community, making 33 public speaking appearances at
Stakeholder and Citizens group meetings.

Page 7

LICENSING
The Arizona Medical Board now has nearly 18,200 physicians licensed to
practice medicine. Approximately 10,000 are practicing in Arizona.
Arizona began licensing medical doctors in
1903, nine years before Arizona became a state.
The Board licensed 198 physicians the first year.
The first Arizona doctors each paid a fee of $2.00.
The doctors names were entered into The
Great Register, the official record book of licensed
Arizona physicians.
Over the passage of time, fees and the way
records are kept have changed. Information on
licensed physicians is maintained in databases in the
Board’s computers. The money generated by li-

cense fees supports the Arizona Medical Board’s
licensing, investigative, budgetary and administrative functions.
The Board conducts primary source verifications on educational and training programs
and performs national queries to determine if a
physician moving from another state is fit to practice in Arizona. Although providing the proper
documents is the responsibility of each applicant,
Board Staff help physicians with the verification
process to reduce the overall timeframe for licensure.

Licenses Issued
FY 06
Licenses Issued

1,429

Resident Permits Issued

758

Locum Tenens Registration

58

Pro Bono Registration

13

Education Teaching Permits

4

Teaching Licenses

2

Dispensing Certificates Issued

489

Average Number of Days to Issue a License (Date of receipt of fully completed application

1.2

Customer Satisfaction Rating

99%

to final issue)

Page 8

REGULATION
A complaint lodged against a physician triggers a process at the Arizona Medical Board that ensures a fair, accurate and thorough investigation with a timely
resolution.
When an investigation finds a statutory
violation, the Arizona Medical Board uses its authority to discipline those licensees who violate
the law.

In the end, the Board is bound by its charge
to protect Arizona citizens from the unlawful and
incompetent practice of medicine. The actions
the Board takes are reflective of that charge.

Disciplinary actions taken against a licensee
are public, and the effects these actions have on a
physician are long-lasting. For that reason, the
Board takes all complaints against physicians seriously, and the decision to issue discipline is based
on a fair, accurate and thorough investigation.

Overall, the Board took disciplinary action in
146 cases (see chart below) during FY 06. In 87
other cases, the Board issued non-disciplinary
Advisory Letters for physicians.

FY 06 Board Actions
56

60
50
40

31

30

24
16

20

12
7

10
0
Loss of License

Practice
Restriction

Decree of
Censure

Letter of
Reprimand

Probation

License Denial

Page 9

ADJUDICATION
The Arizona Medical Board’s regulatory activity begins when a complaint is
opened.
The Board opens an investigation when a
complaint is against an allopathic physician and
the allegation—if true—is a violation of the
Medical Practice Act.
Average Days to Complete an Investigation
Year

Days

2005

201

2006

201*

*The average number of days to complete an investigation for cases
in the first half of calendar year 2006 is below 180.

The Compliance figure represents the number of physicians being monitored. Compliance
officers conduct random chart reviews and report
to the Board any findings of non-compliance.
Failure to obey a Board order can lead to disciplinary action.
One hundred eighteen physicians are
currently participating in the Physician Health
Program and Monitored Aftercare Program.
MAP coordinators ensure physicians comply with
the program’s requirements and are safe to practice medicine. Findings of non-compliance are
immediately brought to the Board’s attention.
Monitored Aftercare Program (MAP)

Investigations Remaining Open at Fiscal Year End
Year

Number

2005

1,243

2006

422

Compliance Monitoring is the Board’s way of
ensuring its orders involving practice restrictions,
limitations and probation are followed.
Compliance Monitoring
Year

2005

2006

Compliance

178

124

2005

2006

91

93

The Board implemented the Physician
Health Program (PHP) for the first time during
the latter part of 2006 FY.
Physician Health Program (PHP)
2005

N/A

2006

25

The PHP evaluates and monitors physicians with
health disorders that may impact on their ability
to practice medicine safely.

Page 10