Morris County Dentist Was 'Violent,' Threw Bloody Tray, Assistant Says

Alissa Pelliccio said she just did her job as a dental assistant when she worked with Dr. John Vecchione, a New Jersey dentist who has been linked to a 15-case bacterial infection outbreak and one death.

And Pelliccio paid the price, she said: Not only did he get angry, Vecchione "threw a bloody tray" at her, she said.

The patients grew weary of his "violent" tantrums, too, she said.

"They were scared coming out of anesthesia, and they had so many questions," she said. "I would spend extra time with them and get in trouble. It was all about money."

Pelliccio, of Parsippany, is another in a growing line of people speaking out about Vecchione, a Morris County oral surgeon who, despite being sanctioned by the state, is still allowed to practice.

Vecchione, who operates in Mt. Olive and Parsippany, engaged in practices linked to 15 bacterial infections of the heart called "endocarditis" for at least two years, including one case that led to a death because of surgery complications, according to records obtained by Patch and filed by the N.J. State Board of Dentistry.

And there could be more than 15 cases in which Vecchione engaged in questionable practices — including one in which a Roxbury man claims he "almost died" in his office when the dentist allegedly administered too much anesthesia. Read more: Patient Of N.J. Dentist Linked To Bacterial Outbreak: 'I Nearly Died In His Office'

Attempts to reach Vecchione have been unsuccessful. Read more: N.J. Dentist Linked to 15-Case Bacterial Outbreak, State Officials Say

Pelliccio is the first employee to speak out, noting that Vecchione's behavior "was very odd from the start, very narcissistic" when she was hired as a dental assistant a few years back.

Pelliccio claims Vecchione would react "violently" when his patients had a reaction to IV sedation that included "very serious drugs." Afterward, she said, they wouldn't remember a thing.

"I have seen him punch patients and leave black and blues and blame it on the surgery," she said.

His Parsippany office was so old, she said, and the equipment never worked properly.

"It was a mess," she said.

Pelliccio said Vecchione was "always rushing us," probably because he was trying to take as many patients as possible so he could collect more money.

"My first week there, they were yelling at me to be faster," she said. "Faster cleaning the rooms, faster setting up the rooms, faster sterilizing instruments and especially with the patients in recovery."

Once, when Vecchione was in a bad mood, he "flipped out" at Pelliccio when she put an instrument on his tray, she said.

"He flipped out on me, throwing the whole bloody tray with dirty, bloody instruments at me, all while the patient was under sedation," she said. "I had to clean it up and get a new sterile tray and instruments to finish the procedure."

Pelliccio said she didn't return after that tray incident several years ago.

"He was just mean and treated his patients poorly and his staff," she said.

"Another girl and I would go home crying a lot."