Tulsa Doctor's License Under Review After 7 Lawsuits

A Tulsa doctor who had her license restricted in 2016 prohibiting her from performing surgeries has been accused by the Oklahoma Medical Board of misconduct including repeated negligence and acting incompetently, News On 6 partner The Frontier reports.

Dr. Leslie Masters allegedly failed to have ongoing laboratory work on patients, didn’t take necessary steps to ensure patient safety and failed to adequately document procedures, a medical board complaint states.

“In addition, there is no documentation showing that assisting personnel were licensed health professionals,” the complaint says.

At a medical board meeting last month, Masters requested a voluntary submittal to jurisdiction — similar to a settlement agreement — in lieu of a formal hearing into the allegations, but the board denied that request. A hearing is slated for July.

Masters did not respond to messages seeking comment, and an attorney representing her didn’t return a phone call. News On 6 stopped by her office - where she offers non-surgical "body contouring," cellulite reduction and injectable treatments.

We were told she did not have time to talk.

News On 6 interviewed Masters for a story in 2015. She invited us to watch her perform a liposuction surgery - something she can't do now. 

7/16/2015 Related Story: Tulsa Doctor Looking At People's Environment To Improve Future Health

The board launched an investigation after discovering Masters reached a $750,000 settlement in a case alleging a patient died during a liposuction surgery. Masters settled seven lawsuits related to liposuction surgery for more than $1.3 million between March 2011 and April 2015, Oklahoma Medical Board records indicate.

The investigation’s findings, outlined in a complaint filed in August, allege Masters committed five violations under Oklahoma law, including failure to keep adequate medical records, gross or repeated negligence and behavior demonstrating an incapacity or incompetence to practice medicine and surgery with reasonable skill and safety.

The board said she gave a patient syringes filled with the patient's fat tissues and told the patient to take them home, put them in the freezer and self-inject them into her face "when she desired." The board said the patient developed a serious bacterial infection in her face.

As a result of next month’s hearing, Masters could be reprimanded or have her medical license suspended or revoked.

Read the full story on The Frontier.