A radiologist is claiming that he was fired from a clinic operated by the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) in southern Illinois after he complained about what he thought was shoddy work at the facility, according to an article published August 24 on FoxNews.com.
Dr. Anthony Leskosky started working at the facility in March 2016 after three decades in private practice. He said that while interpreting scans for patients, he began noticing that prior studies had evidence of pathology, even though they had been interpreted as "normal" by other VA radiologists. These included cancers, aortic aneurysms, bleeding ulcers, and obstructions, according to the article.
Leskosky said he found "serious errors" in the prior scans as often as four or five times a day. In one case, a 17-cm tumor in a patient's pelvis had been missed, Leskosky claimed.
He noted that some radiologists were reviewing 50 to 60 scans a day, rather than the usual workload of 25 to 30, in an effort to boost their productivity and make more money. The article goes on to reference a memo issued on May 31, 2017, in which the VA's Office of Inspector General (OIG) cites quality management and patient care problems at the Marion facility dating back to 2008.
Leskosky said he told his supervisors about the issue but was told to "keep quiet." He claims he was fired after forwarding his concerns to multiple federal agencies, including the OIG, the VA's Office of the Medical Inspector, and congressional representatives.
The article quoted a VA spokesperson as saying that the agency has investigated the allegations and is preparing a report.
