A Bakersfield doctor is facing possible disciplinary action, according to the Medical Board of California.
Dr. Yoo is listed as a board certified physician specializing in pain medicine at the Dr. Yoo’s Rehab and Pain clinic in southwest Bakersfield. The complaint, filed on April 30, alleges that between 2012 and 2016, Dr. Yoo allegedly saw four different patients with chronic pain every two to three months for several years.
The complaint states that Doctor Yoo prescribed multiple medications to these individuals during that time period including powerful opiods like Norco, Percocet, Morphine Sulfate and even Methadone.
In one case the complaint states a patient was hospitalized for overdosing and the doctor was made aware of the incident. However, on the patient’s next visit just 12 days after the overdose, the complaint states that Dr. Yoo refilled that patients opioid prescription.
According to the state medical board there are several items that need to be documented when prescribing these medications, including any side effects they may be experiencing or unusual changes in behavior associated with the medication. The complaint states doctor yoo failed to note these items in the patients charts, but continued to prescribe the stong painkillers—calling his actions negligent and a departure from the expected standard of care.
The doctor has not had a hearing or been been found guilty of any charges at this point but could be at risk of losing his medical license, being placed on probation, or even a public reprimand if found guilty.
We tried to contact Dr. Yoo for comment but have not heard back at the time of this publicaiton. This is an ongoing story and we will update as we learn more.
