News Release — July 16, 2003

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July 16, 2003

Medical Board Accusation Leads to Surrender
of Los Angeles County Physician's Medical License

SACRAMENTO—Facing a formal Accusation of wrongdoing by the Medical Board of California, Covina physician Victor Vicente Leon, M.D. has been ordered to surrender his license to practice medicine. The stipulated surrender of his medical license was ordered on July 9, 2003 and becomes effective today, July 16, 2003.

The Medical Board accused Leon of violating Business and Professions Code section 2234 for engaging in conduct constituting general unprofessional conduct with regard to his care and treatment of an obstetrics patient. He agreed that such conduct constituted cause for discipline.

Leon engaged in an extreme departure from the standard of practice in the care and treatment of this patient by failing to immediately hospitalize her after she presented with contractions, cervical dilation and effacement. His omission prevented timely serial monitoring to determine if the contractions were causing the cervical change, and if the prescribed tocolytic, Brethine, was working or needed to be replaced. Leon's omission represented a lack of medical judgment and knowledge.

In order to resolve this matter without the necessity of a costly and prolonged hearing, and because Leon voluntarily retired from the practice of medicine around September 2002, he agreed to surrender his medical license without further administrative process.

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The mission of the Medical Board is to protect healthcare consumers through the proper licensing and regulation of physicians and surgeons and certain allied healthcare professions and through the vigorous, objective enforcement of the Medical Practice Act.

If you have a question or complaint about the healthcare you are receiving, the Board encourages you to visit its Web site at www.medbd.ca.gov or with questions call the Consumer Information Line at (916) 263-2382, or with complaints call (800) 633-2322.

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