South Florida Injury Attorney Blog

The Florida Board of Medicine revoked the license of an abortion doctor who ignored his patient so long that she gave birth to a very premature child, who was then thrown into the trash the Associated Press reported Feb. 6. The board found that Pierre John-Jacques Renelique had committed medical malpractice, failed to keep accurate records and delegated medical tasks to non-medical employees at his clinic in Hialeah. His license was revoked, and the Miami-Dade State’s Attorney’s office is considering whether to bring criminal charges.

The baby’s mother, Sycloria Williams, was 23 weeks (just under six months) pregnant and intended to get an abortion when she arrived at the clinic. However, the doctor was not there when she arrived at 9:30 a.m., despite the fact that he had given her drugs the day before to start the procedure. After undergoing more preparation and waiting about four hours, Williams gave birth to an extremely premature baby girl. The complaint against Renelique alleges that a clinic employee who was not a doctor then put the baby, placenta and afterbirth into a red biohazard bag and threw them in the trash, where police found the child dead a week later. An hour later, Renelique arrived and tried to start the abortion, only to discover that there was no fetus.

This story is attracting a lot of attention because it involves the contentious issue of abortion. As a Florida medical malpractice attorney, however, I’m interested in the medical negligence aspects of the case. In addition to the apparent negligence involved in the case itself, I wonder about the timing of the disciplinary case. Readers may not have noticed that this incident took place more than two years ago, in 2006 -- but Renelique’s license has only just come up for review. Under those circumstances, it’s easy to wonder how many other Florida doctors are still practicing despite serious charges or pending disciplinary hearings against them.

We go to our doctors trusting that they have the training, skills and compassion to give us the best care they can. Most doctors are worthy of that trust -- but when they’re not, they can seriously harm their patients. Mistakes in surgery or medication, failure to diagnose a fast-moving disease and hospital-acquired infections affect hundreds of thousands of patients every year, killing them or leaving them permanently disabled. When doctors provide care that falls so far below basic medical standards, they have committed medical malpractice and are liable in any South Florida medical malpractice lawsuit their patients may file.

If you believe you or someone you love is a victim of a careless doctor, Cohn, Smith & Cohn can help. Our Miami medical malpractice lawyers represent victims of medical mistakes throughout the state of Florida. To talk to us about your case and your options at a free consultation, contact us online as soon as possible.