Long Island hospitals had complaints against ex-urologist Darius Paduch a decade before sex-abuse conviction, court records show

NewYork-Presbyterian/Weill Cornell Medical Center fielded numerous complaints against former Long Island urologist Darius Paduch for inappropriate behavior from patients and hospital staff more than a decade before he was convicted of sexually abusing underage boys and men in his care, court records show.

The former doctor, still specializing in treating infertility, went on to work for Northwell Health in Lake Success from 2020 to 2023, where complaints continued to pour in, according to internal documents filed in court, until April 2023 when federal prosecutors indicted Paduch on multiple counts of inducement to travel to engage in unlawful sexual activity and inducing a minor to engage in sex.

After a two-week trial in May 2024 in which victims, some of whom were underage at the time, told of being groomed and abused under the guise of treatment, he was convicted of multiple counts of sexually abusing patients and sentenced to life in prison.

Now, some alleged victims of the former doctor — many of whom were not part of the criminal case — continue to seek justice from the hospitals they say gave him the prominence and the platform to prey on them. At least 800 lawsuits have been filed by civil lawyer Mallory Allen and other lawyers, against the two hospitals for Paduch’s behavior.

The suits claim assault and battery, negligence and intentional infliction of severe emotional distress.

"Many of our clients saw Dr. Paduch while he was under active investigation at both hospitals," Allen told Newsday. "How they allow him to see patients while he's under active investigation for sexual misconduct is beyond me. A big goal of our clients is to figure out what did they know and when did they know it."

Most of the documents provided by Weill Cornell and Northwell have been filed under seal. Still, the records that are available show that since at least 2006, hospital administrators were aware of bizarre and inappropriate behavior by Paduch.

An internal investigation into reports Paduch used "inappropriate language" with staff and patients said the claims were "substantiated."

The former urologist, who was ordered to surrender his medical license to the New York State Board of Professional Medical Conduct in December, was seen as a leading practitioner in his field, often treating Klinefelter's syndrome, a genetic disorder that causes infertility in men.

Krista Bevin, a pseudonym used to protect the identity of the mother of one of Paduch’s patients, testified in the criminal trial of the hope she felt when she learned of his therapy at a Johns Hopkins conference on the malady.

His research on extracting sperm from adolescent patients has been cited widely in U.S. and international medical journals.

As his reputation grew, it brought more patients in and, according to Allen, it made the hospitals less inclined to question his behavior.

"It's apparent to me, at least, that Dr. Paduch was considered to be a bit of a feather in their cap at Northwell. They got this esteemed, supposedly, physician from Cornell to join Northwell and be a part of its urology program," Allen said. "When they started receiving complaints, they didn't want to hear it. Their motivations were to protect their physicians, protect their reputation, protect their brand."

Northwell noted that the majority of his career had been at Cornell and he was suspended and then fired from the Long Island hospital on the day of his arrest, April 11, 2023.

"Providing the best care to our patients comes first at Northwell, which is why we were appalled by the deeply disturbing allegations made against Dr. Paduch," spokeswoman Barbara Osborn said. "We are unable to comment further at this time due to ongoing litigation."

At the same time his reputation was growing, NewYork-Presbyterian employees were writing letters complaining of Paduch’s treatment of staff and unconventional behavior, according to court records.

A 2006 periodic employment review found his score "below the minimum threshold for the program."

Although the report concluded he was "an excellent, knowledgeable lecturer" it also found he was "a little volatile" in the operating room and had thrown resident physicians out for making "inadvertent errors."

Paduch received a low score on a 2006 employment review that mentioned he "has made inappropriate comments regarding phallus length and sexuality to residents."

There were warnings about his behavior.

“[He] has made inappropriate comments regarding phallus length and sexuality to residents," the report said.

Documents show hospital administrators were aware these complaints were not isolated.

"Several events have occurred over the past 10 years and were handled at the departmental level with faculty counseling,"  wrote a high-ranking administrator who was a professor and chairman at Weill Cornell Medical College in a December 2018 email about an "immediate patient care concern" regarding Paduch.

New York’s Board of Professional Medical Conduct, a watchdog department in charge of doctor discipline, received a complaint against Paduch in 2018 for asking a patient to masturbate in front of him, photographing the patient’s genitalia and showing him photos of other men’s erections.

The doctor also grilled him on what kind of pornography he liked and showed him pornography in the examination room.

It’s unclear what the board did about the complaint. Aside from the public order suspending him from practice and the record of Paduch surrendering his license, the board said they were prohibited from discussing complaints, investigations or prosecutions.

"Information on previously closed complaints, dismissed actions, and ongoing investigations is confidential, as are the names and identities of complainants," Danielle De Souza, spokeswoman for the board, said in an email. "Investigative files are confidential as well and are disclosed neither to complainants nor physicians."

Numerous staff complaints provided in the court file show similar complaints against the doctor.

In 2020, patient Tucker Coburn, who was 16 when he started seeing Paduch in June 2016 for treatment, wrote a letter, which is provided in court records, telling hospital administrators at Northwell: "I was sexually assaulted by Dr. Paduch." 

Coburn’s experience echoes testimony from victims during the criminal trial.

A nurse at the hospital told Coburn, now 27, of another patient who said Paduch had also touched him inappropriately, he said in his letter.

"For well over a year, him & I made a little support-group-of-two to help process our   experiences & plan how to approach our appointments with Dr. Paduch to avoid getting assaulted again," Coburn wrote in his note.

He closed the message to the medical authorities with a plea.

"I sincerely hope that Dr. Paduch no longer assaults his patients, but hope isn’t enough," Coburn wrote. "Please, before one of your patients is assaulted or abused by this man, investigate his prior actions & consider taking appropriate measures."

Hospital investigators looked into Coburn’s claim, a report included in the court file, and found him credible, but also believed Paduch’s denials.

In the end, the medical group determined that "allegations of assault were not substantiated as no corroborating evidence was presented."

Staff members said they told Weill Cornell administrators for years that Paduch could be demeaning and inappropriate at work and with patients. 

A five-page letter from one hospital employee paints the former doctor as an intrusive and demanding boss who would make sexually suggestive jokes and homophobic comments.

In one instance when Paduch felt the worker was taking too long with a patient, he came into the examination room and asked, "What’s taking so long? Are you having an orgy?" he asked, according to the note.

An ultrasound technician at Northwell said she saw him manually stimulate a patient, something a urology expert testified at the criminal trial is not an appropriate medical treatment.

"I turned toward my computer screen in shock and left the ultrasound room," she said during a deposition.

Another staffer, in a separate complaint, made a similar critique of Paduch’s behavior.

"His use of humor while dealing with some patients while I have assisted him may seem humorous to him but I, from the look on patients’ faces, find it very inappropriate, shocking, and embarrassing," the unnamed clinical technician told Cornell Hospital administrators, according to a 2007 letter submitted in the court file. "His use of language while joking with patients as well as myself has been very sexual and at times demeaning."

Though Paduch’s employment reviews indicated he was well respected in his field, one patient said he was maimed by the doctor’s treatment.

"My experience with Dr. Darius Paduch, a urologist in your department, is diametrically opposed to your stated mission," the man, who was 22 when he came to Paduch for help, wrote in a 2018 letter to Weill Cornell. "His violations of proper doctor/patient boundaries include sexual and nonsexual misconduct and breaches of trust. Not only did he use this imbalance of power to exploit and harm me, but his flagrant medical negligence has resulted in a catastrophic injury to me."

It’s unclear how the hospital reacted to the patient’s complaint.

The hospitals have refused to provide records on the due diligence that they pursued to verify Paduch was a safe and competent doctor, called his credentialing file, claiming it is confidential under New York law.

After Paduch’s indictment, Weill Cornell hired an outside law firm to look at how they handled complaints against the doctor and, a spokeswoman said, brought in an expert to review their patient safety standards.

"The acts described in this litigation are deeply disturbing and we are heartbroken for these survivors," Weill Cornell spokeswoman Sara Smith said in an email. "Patient safety has always been our highest priority, and it is our obligation to establish an environment that promotes dignity and respect for everyone who entrusts us with their care."

The hospital said it has since made changes to prevent this kind of abuse from happening again.

"We have implemented enhancements to our policies and training requirements, and launched new patient safety programs, to minimize the risk of such abhorrent conduct occurring in the future," Smith said.