Clinic head faces complaints

By Susie Steckner,
Jodie Snyder and
Heather Ratcliffe
The Arizona Republic
July 15, 1998

The Phoenix abortion clinic where two women bled to death in the past three years is one of several clinics owned by a New York doctor who's been the target of numerous complaints and lawsuits in Arizona and elsewhere.

At least two cases against Moshe Hachamovitch involve the deaths of patients -- one a 15-year-old girl -- who suffered complications after having abortions at his clinics in New York and Texas.

In both cases, investigators reported various problems at the clinics -- from unsanitary conditions to unsafe equipment to poor record-keeping.

One investigator noted that the Texas clinic presented a "serious and immediate threat to the health and safety of its patients."

Hachamovitch was cleared in one death; the other remains under investigation.

Hachamovitch and one of his clinics, or both, also have been named in at least eight lawsuits. And Arizona medical records show seven complaints against Hachamovitch, while New York records show three complaints.

Hachamovitch did not return phone calls seeking comment.

Hachamovitch is listed as the CEO of at least three abortion clinics in the Valley: A-Z Women's Center in Phoenix and Family Planning Institutes in Phoenix and Tempe.

The A-Z Women's Center has come under fire in recent days because of a near-abortion performed there by Dr. John Biskind on June 30. According to police, Biskind was attempting to abort a fetus but instead ended up delivering a full-term baby.

An earlier examination by clinic personnel showed the fetus to be 23 weeks old; it turned out to be 37 weeks old, police said.

Records show that Biskind was admonished by the Arizona Board of Medical Examiners eight years earlier for nearly aborting another full-term baby.

Biskind has also been investigated in the deaths of two patients, one in April and one in 1995. Medical board records show both women bled to death. Biskind was censured for gross negligence in the 1995 death; the other death is still being investigated.

Attempts to reach Biskind for comment have been unsuccessful.

Records show that Hachamovitch is based in New York, where he operates at least two clinics. But he also has medical licenses in Arizona, Texas and Pennsylvania.

Officials with the medical boards in Texas and Pennsylvania report no past complaints about Hachamovitch but noted that they cannot comment on pending investigations.

In Texas, the state Department of Health filed a lawsuit against a Houston A to Z Women's Services, Hachamovitch and then-clinic administrator Kristen King Fehr in 1994.

According to the lawsuit, a 15-year-old girl underwent an abortion in February 1994; four days later, she was admitted to a hospital suffering symptoms of blood poisoning, with a fever, chills, abdominal pain and nausea.

Hospital officials determined that the girl had a tear in her cervix and a post-abortion infection. She was placed in the intensive care unit but died March 2, 1994, as a result of the infection.

A state investigator sent to the clinic found instruments used in abortion procedures that had dried red material on them, instruments that may not have been sterilized and staff who were not properly trained in how to clean instruments, according to court records.

In one case, an instrument called a curette -- a spoon-shaped instrument used to scrape tissue away -- that should have been smooth was jagged, the investigator noted.

The clinic also did not report the death of the girl within two days as required. It was reported nine days later. That case is still pending in Travis County District Court.

In New York, Hachamovitch was disciplined after a woman died in one of his clinics.

In 1990, a woman in her second trimester went to his Bronx office for an abortion. Prior to the procedure, she complained about pain, severe bleeding and other ills, but the procedure was performed anyway, according to the New York state Health Department. She went into cardiopulmonary arrest and died hours after the procedure.

The department also investigated complaints involving poor record-keeping, such as neglecting to mention how much blood a patient lost during a procedure.

The department charged Hachamovitch with gross negligence, improper delegation of duties and inadequate record-keeping.

The review panel looking at the charges found Hachamovitch was in no way responsible for the woman's death. But it did find him responsible for record-keeping violations.

The board said it wanted to send Hachamovitch a stern message, but also wanted to acknowledge his level of skill and practice. It suspended his license for a year but stayed 11 months of the suspension.

Hachamovitch contested the 1993 decision in court. In 1997, the penalty was imposed, said Frances Tarlton of the Health Department.

In Arizona, medical board records show seven complaints against Hachamovitch. Three letters of concern were issued in two of the cases -- one for problems with medical records and one for failing to file fetal death certificates, required if the fetus is 24 weeks or older.

A complaint from April remains under investigation, said Eric Nickell, the board ombudsman. The other complaints were dismissed.

Maricopa County Superior Court records show seven lawsuits that name Hachamovitch, Biskind or the A-Z clinic in Phoenix. One of them involves the death of Biskind's patient in 1995.

The A-Z clinic in Phoenix was also fined for at least one serious and 11 non-serious health hazards in 1996 by the Occupational Safety and Health Administration, according to documents.

The serious fine, which totaled $2,500, was for not cleaning equipment and surfaces after contact with potentially infectious materials.

The report, filed May 1, 1996, said a suction machine in the operating room was contaminated with blood, dirt and dried soap.