Opinion ID: 2181329
Heading Depth: 1
Heading Rank: 10

Heading: In the Court of Special Appeals

Text: In the Court of Special Appeals, Finucan argued that a physician who engages in sexual relations with current patients is not committing immoral or unprofessional conduct in the practice of medicine. He also maintained that there was a lack of substantial evidence to support the Board's finding that he had engaged in immoral or unprofessional conduct in the practice of medicine. In addition, Finucan argued that the Board had violated the Accardi doctrine and he was otherwise deprived of due process. The Court of Special Appeals affirmed the Circuit Court's judgment. Finucan v. Maryland State Bd. of Physician Quality Assurance, 151 Md.App. 399, 827 A.2d 176 (2003). The intermediate appellate court concluded there was substantial evidence to support the Board's first-level findings that Finucan had sexual relationships with Patients A, B, and D while they were his patients. The court reasoned that the facts illustrated that a physician's engaging in a sexual relationship with a patientwhether or not it occurs in the immediate act of diagnosis or treatment, or inside or outside of a medical setting, or while the physician is technically `on duty'has a deleterious effect on the patient's welfare. Based on the imbalance of power between Finucan and his patients, and his knowledge of his patients' medical histories, family situations, and current physical and emotional states, the intermediate appellate court held as correct the Board's conclusion that Finucan's unprofessional conduct with regard to Patients A, B, and D occurred in the practice of medicine. Finally, the court noted that Finucan's allegations regarding the Accardi doctrine and due process, even as amorphous as presented there, had not been raised before the ALJ or Board and, thus, were deemed waived for judicial review purposes. In any event, based on its review of the voluminous appellate record, no due process violations or prejudicial procedural errors were revealed.