Washington doctor surrenders license

An Washington physician who has faced disciplinary charges on five occasions and has been hit with an $18 million malpractice verdict has surrendered her license.

Dr. Lynette Iles, a 57-year-old physician from Washington County who has practiced family medicine in Iowa for decades, agreed to surrender her license earlier this month after the Iowa Board of Medicine accused her of incompetence.

The board had accused Iles of failure to comply with a board subpoena and failure to comply with a board investigation. The board did not publicly disclose the basis for any of the charges against Iles as part of its statement of charges or as part of the final settlement.

In February 2009, the board accused Iles of failing to provide appropriate medical care and treatment for patients with chronic pain and failure to maintain appropriate professional boundaries with patients.

As a result, Iles agreed to complete 30 credit hours of additional education and to be monitored by the Iowa Physician Health Program while her license remained on probation for the next five years.

In January 2014, the board accused Iles of failing to provide obstetric care to multiple patients at her Washington practice between 2005 and 2010. She was ordered to pay a $5,000 civil penalty and barred from practicing obstetrics, her license was placed on probation for an additional five years and she was required to undergo remedial education and training and monitoring.

In May 2015, the board accused Iles of failing to comply with the terms of her 2014 settlement agreement, in part by failing to complete the educational requirements imposed earlier. As a result, she was fined an additional $5,000.

In June 2017, the board again accused Iles of failing to comply with the terms of her 2014 settlement agreement. As a result, she was fined $10,000 and her medical license was suspended for 30 days.

Earlier that same year, a Washington County jury found that Iles was negligent in the care provided to a pregnant patient and her child. The child sustained brain damage immediately prior to birth, leaving her permanently disabled. At trial, the jury awarded the child’s mother $18.1 million.

According to the Board of Medicine, Iles only responded to the most recent allegations against her after the board compelled her to appear in court regarding her failure to comply with a subpoena seeking information on patient care.