Georgia Doctor Stripped of Medical License In Two Patient Deaths Is Contract Worker At JFL

Nedra Dodds, a former metro Atlanta-based plastic surgeon stripped of her medical license in February by the Georgia Composite Medical Board in connection with two patient deaths, is currently employed as a contract worker at St. Croix’s Juan F. Luis Hospital (JFL).

The VI Consortium learned of Dodds’ affiliation with JFL from information received through its news tip line. In a visit to JFL today, this reporter first met with an official in the personnel department to confirm Dodds’ affiliation with the hospital and the capacity in which she works.

Stating that she was not at liberty to disclose that information to the media, the employee referred this reporter to Sammuel Baptiste, special assistant to hospital CEO, Dr. Kendall Griffith.

Baptiste confirmed that Dodds is currently under a contractual agreement with JFL, but he was uncertain as to the extent of her work duties.

“I know she is on contract here at the hospital, that’s all I can confirm,” Baptiste said.

He further explained that as a physician, Dodds would directly report to the hospital’s Chief Medical Officer, Dr. Mavis Matthew.

“As you know, Nedra Dodds is a physician…whether she is licensed or not, she is a physician, so normally she would report to the CMO,” he said. “So, I’m going to speak with the CMO, as well as with Dr. Griffith, to answer your questions.”

When asked if Dodds has any direct contact with patients, Baptiste emphatically said she does not.

“She is not doing any type of procedures whatsoever and she’s not seeing any patients at all, but I can find out exactly what her capacity is here,” he said, “that is something I need to clarify.”

In a show of good faith, he offered to contact Dr. Matthew right away, pledging his interest in fully cooperating with the VI Consortium’s investigation.

“It’s not like we’re hiding anything, we want to be as transparent as possible,” he said, while dialing Dr. Matthew’s extension. However, the doctor could not be reached, so Baptiste sent her a text message regarding the nature of this reporter’s visit.

He then reiterated: “[Nedra Dodds] is with the hospital on contract, to what capacity, I don’t know the extent of the contract and that is the information I will gather for you. I know for a fact she is not seeing patients, I am aware of that; she’s not scheduled to see any patients, nor has she seen any patients whatsoever, so that is not anywhere in her scope.”

Baptiste assured this reporter he would send responses to the questions surrounding Dodds’ affiliation with JFL after conferring with Drs. Griffith and Matthew. As of press time, however, VI Consortium had not received answers to its questions, including when did Dodds come under contract with JFL, in what capacity does she work, who made the decision to bring her on board, and was the hospital and its board aware of Dodds’ legal and professional troubles in Georgia prior to contracting her services for JFL, in addition to other related questions.

The VI Consortium will continue to following this story and provide updates as they become available.

The Background Story

Consumer investigative reporter Adam Murphy of the CBS affiliate in Atlanta investigated Dodds, a former model, for seven months after learning of the deaths of two young women following procedures of liposuction and a buttocks reduction at Dodds’ now-defunct Opulence Aesthetic Medicine practice in Kennesaw, Ga. The VI Consortium placed a call to the number listed on the company’s website, but the number was disconnected.

The State Medical Board suspended Dodds’ license on Friday, Feb. 28, 2014, saying, “The Board finds that Respondent’s continued practice of medicine poses a threat to the public health, safety, and welfare and imperatively requires emergency action and hereby ORDERS that Respondent’s license to practice medicine in the state of Georgia be and is hereby SUMMARILY SUSPENDED…”

The report added that Dodds was Board Certified only in emergency care, but not in plastic surgery, the medical practice under which she performed the fatal procedures on the young women. See the Medical Board’s full report here.

View the video below for the full story on Dodds’ background, as reported by CBS 46 in Atlanta.