Pediatrician Dr. Lindeman Appeals State Suspension of His License

​Last month, the state suspended the license to practice medicine for a popular Framingham pediatrician.

The Massachusetts Board of Registration in Medicine summarily suspended the medical license of Dr. Robert P. Lindeman, finding ”he is an immediate and serious threat to the public health, safety, and welfare.”

The Board alleges Dr. Lindeman “failed to meet the standard of care when treating four patients, issued prescriptions to several individuals not in the usual course of his medical practice, and failed to properly maintain several medical records,” according to a release.

Framingham Patch was the first media outlet to report on the suspension.

The state ordered Dr. Lindeman to stop practicing medicine on Dec. 17.

Dr. Linderman who has owned and operated Natick Pediatrics since 2002, appealed the decision, according to legal counsel for the Massachusetts Board.

A hearing was scheduled for Dec. 29 through 31 with the Massachusetts Division of Administrative Law Appeals to “make recommendations of findings of fact.” The hearing was closed to the public.

Framingham Patch requested details on the complaints against Dr. Lindeman.

Patch was provided legal documents on each patient complaint and details on each prescription written to adults, including Dr. Lindeman’s hairdresser and his wife. The names of the patients were not included.

Among the complaints, Dr. Lindeman

• misdiagnosed a male child, who later died of diabetes mellitus in 2002
  
• misdiagnosed a male child with flu-like symptoms in 2006. The child was later admitted to the ER with severe case of empyema of the lung requiring surgery and a 9-day stay in the pediatric intensive care unit.
  
• failed to recognize the signs of jaundice in a 6-day old boy in 2008, who was admitted to a hospital with jaundice, more than twice the level considered dangerous.
  

In the 11-page legal statement of allegations document provided by the State’s licensing board, the following was described:

• Pediatric Patient A: Patient A is a male, born in 2006. ​ Patient’s mother called on March 9, 2012 stating son had a fever and was lethargic. On March 11, Dr. Lindeman made a visit to the patient’s home and diagnosed a flu-like illness. Dr. Lindeman failed to document the visit to the patient’s home in the records. On March 12, the mom called and reported her son had not improved. On March 14, Dr. Lindeman prescribed Amoxicillin by telephone. On March 18, the the mother told Dr. Lindeman the fever was down, but her son had not recovered. On March 19, the mother took her son to another doctor who ordered lab work and referred the mother to a cardiologist at Massachusetts General Hospital. On March 20, at Massachusetts General Hospital, an echocardiogram was performed. Patient A was taken to the emergency room. He was diagnosed with a severe case of empyema of the lung requiring surgery and a 9-day stay in the pediatric intensive care unit.
• Pediatric Patient B: Patient B is a male born in 1990. On April 22, 2002 Dr. Lindeman met with patient B, who had a history of a 4-5 day illness, that include the symptoms of polydipsia (drinking a lot) and significant weight loss. (Both are signs of diabetes mellitus.) Lindeman diagnosed patient B with streptococcal pharyngitis. On April 23, Lindeman learned patient B was admitted to the emergency room. Dr. Lindeman went to the hospital and told the mother, “based on early indication at the hospital, it appeared that patient B had diabetes mellitus.” The patient died on the morning of April 24.
• Pediatric Patient C: Patient C is a male born in 2008. Patient was discharged from the hospital on his fourth day with a bilirubin level of 9.7 (Elevated bilirubin levels in newborns can contribute to jaundice.) A level of 20 is considered dangerous. Dr. Lindeman saw patient C on his sixth day of life. Several hours later patient C was brought to an emergency room for yellowness and lethargy. The hospital said the boy’s bilirubin level was 43.
• Pediatric Patient D: Patient D is a male born in 2001. Dr. Lindeman examined the baby on day 1, day 3 and day 5. The family had a history of jaundice. The baby developed jaundice. The doctor failed to maintain a record of his examinations of patient D.
• Pediatric Patient E: Patient E is a male born in 1989. Dr. Lindeman began treating patient E in 2003. Between 2003 and 2001, Dr. Lindeman saw patient E for back pain. In April 2005, Dr. Lindeman saw patient E for depression. In Dec. 2007, Dr. Lindeman saw patient E for a toothache and prescribed hydrocondone (a controlled substance) for him. In June 2008, patient E was admitted to MetroWest Medical for psychiatric treatment of bipolar disorder and depression. During his hospitalization, a psychiatrist advised against prescribing narcotics or benzodiazepines to patient E. In July 2009, during a routine physical exam, Dr. Lindeman refilled a prescription for 360 hydrocodone tablets for patient E. Between March 2010 and October 2011, Dr. Lindeman wrote 21 prescriptions for narcotics, including hydrocodone, oxycodone and vicoprofen for patient E. He never examined the patient and had only telephone communications.

• Adult Patient A: Patient A is a male born in 1968 and cut Dr. Lindeman’s hair. Between July 22, 2007 and Aug. 15, 2013, Dr. Lindeman prescribed Adderall, Adderall XR, Ambien, Gabapentin, Clindamycin and Proair HFA, but never examined the patient. Three of the prescriptions were for controlled substances. Dr. Lindeman did keep a medical record for the patient, even though he was never in his office. No exam or diagnosis was listed in the medical record.
• Adult Patient B: Patient B is a female, born in 1967 and wife of patient A. Between April 29 and August 15 2013, Dr. Lindeman prescribed Adderall for patient B, a controlled substance. The medical record does not indicate any exam was performed and no diagnosis was listed in the record.
• Adult Patient C: Patient C is a female, born in 1976. On January 13, 2013, Dr. Lindeman wrote a prescription for a controlled substance Codeine Sulfate for her. No records were kept for this patient.
• Adult Patient D: Patient D is a female, born in 1979. In 2012, Dr. Lindeman wrote two prescriptions for a controlled substance - phentermine - for patient 4. One prescription allowed for two refills and one for five refills. No records were kept for patient 4 by Dr. Lindeman.​
• Adult Patient E: Patient E is a male born in 1979. In July 2013, Dr. Lindeman wrote a prescription for a controlled substance - phentermine - for him. No records were kept for patient 5.

The Massachusetts Board of Registration in Medicine “determined that good cause exists to believe the acts occurred and constitute a violation for which a licensee may be sanctioned.”

The Board alleged Dr. Lindeman had practiced medicine in “violation of law, regulations or good and accepted medical practice.”​

Editor’s Note: Patch originally published that the death in 2002, was not part of the license suspension, but it was included in the 11-page document emailed to the news site.

Lindeman, who lives in Brookline, is board-certified in general pediatrics.

The Framingham-based practice focuses on childhood and adolescent health care, with a specialty in diseases of the lung, such as asthma and chronic cough.

He earned his undergraduate degree at Yale University. Dr. Lindeman graduated from Columbia University College of Physicians and Surgeons in 1994 and has been licensed to practice medicine in Massachusetts since 1999.

He completed his medical training at Children’s Hospital in Boston, and was associated with a general pediatrics practice on the South Shore before being recruited by Metro West Medical Center, to establish a pediatrics and pediatric pulmonary practice in Natick, according to his profile on Natick Pediatrics. The practice is now located in the Lincoln Medical Building in Framingham.

He is certified by the American Board of Pediatrics.

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Photo is a screenshot of Natick Pediatrics website


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