Fake doctor faces charges
A 36-year-old Denver surgical assistant who posed as a plastic surgeon and ran his own cosmetic surgery clinic has been arrested on charges of criminal impersonation, illegally practicing as a medical doctor, sexual assault and child abuse.
Denver District Attorney Mitch Morrissey’s office has charged Carlos Hernandez Fernandez with 10 felonies, including four counts of second-degree assault, and three misdemeanors, according to a news release by Lynn Kimbrough, Morrissey’s spokeswoman.
Fernandez claimed he had physician’s privileges at Porter Adventist Hospital and Swedish Medical Center, but officials at both hospitals say he worked only on a limited basis to perform surgeon assistant duties and never as a surgeon. Fernandez had a valid state license as a surgical assistant, hospital officials said.
Fernandez had worked out of the Hernandez Fernandez Clinic at 424 S. Federal Blvd. at least since January 2015, performing surgeries including face-lifts with no general anesthesia and only local anesthesia, if any at all. He also did business by the name H-F Care Complete Beauty.
On Aug. 4, when Officer William Cash II arrived at Fernandez’s clinic, he was in the process of performing an “invasive surgical procedure,” an arrest affidavit says.
Kimbrough said Fernandez mostly performed cosmetic surgery, including tummy tucks. One of the identified victims had a face-lift procedure and then additional procedures on her face. He used titles for himself as Dr. and M.D. and advertised that he performed other procedures including rhinoplasty and breast augmentation.
“The defendant was impersonating a licensed medical provider,” the report says.
According to the charging documents, Fernandez’s choice of weapon was a “scalpel.” The court document says that while engaged in the treatment or examination of victims, he sexually assaulted two victims.
Fernandez allegedly victimized four people who suffered serious injuries as a result of procedures, the news release says. Two of those people were also victims of unlawful sexual contact.
Fernandez has been released on a $2,000 bond.
Fernandez claimed on the website Healthgrades.com that he had admitting privileges at two Denver hospitals — Centura Health-Porter Adventist Hospital and Swedish Medical Center — and had a five-star patient satisfaction rating based on two reviews.
Healthgrades.com, which provides information on U.S. physicians and medical professionals, immediately disabled Fernandez’s profile when company officials learned of his “fraud,” Healthgrades spokeswoman Liz Boten said Tuesday. Fernandez’s original Healthgrades profile correctly identified him as a medical specialist, but he violated the law and Healthgrades’ user agreement by updating the profile and claiming he was a medical doctor, Boten said.
The Colorado Division of Professions and Occupations suspended Fernandez’s surgical assistant license Aug. 4, the same day he was arrested, according to a Department of Regulatory Agencies document. An emergency action was taken for safety reasons based on his “deliberate and willful violation.”
A DORA document ordering Fernandez to cease and desist said he held himself out as a plastic surgeon who examined and treated patients. During patient visits, he made recommendations and prescribed treatments, administered medications and gave prescription medications.
DORA will continue to investigate to determine whether further discipline is warranted.
Fernandez was licensed to practice as a surgical assistant in Colorado on April 26, 2011.
DORA received a complaint Aug. 1 that Fernandez performed surgery at the Federal Boulevard clinic on a patient identified by the initials “C.C-T.” The DORA suspension notice said Fernandez advertised on social media that he worked at the surgery departments of Swedish and Porter Adventist.
On Aug. 5, DORA officials notified Porter Adventist about the suspension. The hospital terminated Fernandez’s contract that afternoon, said Chrissy Nicholson, hospital spokeswoman.
“We immediately turned off all of his access to our facilities,” Nicholson said.
She emphasized that the Healthgrades website was inaccurate. Fernandez assisted with surgeries in the operating room a couple of times a month and never served as a medical doctor, Nicholson said. He always worked under the supervision of a physician during surgery and never performed surgery, Nicholson said.
Nicole Williams, spokeswoman for Swedish, said Fernandez was not employed at Swedish but he was credentialed to work as a surgical assistant on occasions when physicians sought him out. Even though he wasn’t an employee, he had to undergo criminal background and license-verification checks and drug tests.