Latest Update on Dr. J. Joffe Who Had License Revoked In Ontario, Canada

Here is the latest on Dr. Joffe, who lost his license to practice medicine in Ontario, Canada and is now back working in Mexico .

$12-million lawsuit aimed at weight-loss doctor

ANTHONY REINHART
 

April 9, 2009

A well-known Toronto weight-loss surgeon whose sexual abuse of patients cost him his medical licence late last year is now facing a $12-million class action lawsuit along with a hospital that employed him.

The suit, filed on Monday with the Ontario Superior Court of Justice, claims that Jacobo Joffe left a trail of traumatized patients through "sexual assault and battery," and that Scarborough Hospital, where he performed bariatric surgery hundreds of times since 1999, "knew or should have known about Joffe's substance abuse and his predatory sexual behaviour ..."

The plaintiff is a woman in her 40s known only as A.V.A., on whom Dr. Joffe operated in 2002. A court order prevents publication of her name and those of others expected to join the action. "We would be surprised if there weren't dozens," Bryan McPhadden, lawyer for the plaintiff, said yesterday.

Last December, Dr. Joffe pleaded no contest to sexual abuse accusations from four patients, including twin sisters, at a disciplinary hearing of the College of Physicians and Surgeons of Ontario. The 59-year-old doctor, a leading Canadian expert in bariatric surgery, carried on concurrent relationships with patients for nearly a decade, the disciplinary committee heard before it revoked his medical licence. He was ordered to pay $40,000 to the victims.

Since then, the once-married father of four has been living in Mexico, but maintains a North York apartment with his girlfriend, who is an ex-patient, a source told The Globe and Mail.

At the disciplinary hearing, the committee was told that Dr. Joffe ingratiated himself with the sisters by complimenting them and telling them it was every man's dream to have sex with twins. He did not contest allegations he used illicit drugs with them and "engaged in various sexual acts with them, both separately and together," sometimes at his office.

Yesterday, Scarborough Hospital issued a statement saying, "The first time the hospital was made aware of complaints of sexual misconduct by Dr. Joffe was on June 5, 2007, when we received notification from the College of Physicians and Surgeons of Ontario." The college imposed restrictions on his practice at that time, it said.

 

Unbelievable. This needs to be posted everywhere, so that people don't wind up trusting this guy.

That's why I posted it here so that people will beware when he starts to operate in Mexico again.

I have been operated on several times by Dr. Jocabo Joffe @ Scarborough Grace Hospital in Toronto. I was one of his first patients. My first  surgery took place in 1987 for gastric Bypass surgery in which I almost died and spent 6 weeks in hospital. If it weren't for him, I would not be sitting here to write this. He saved my life in more ways than one. I had numerous complications which had nothing to due with his skills. My lung colasped along with numerous other complications at that time. He never missed a day in 6 weeks for checking on me including on his days off as he knew I was seriously ill and knocking on deaths door. His compasion and caring is what got me to keep  fighting to live. He would come to the hospital on days off  just to check on me nobody else. I was dying and I was given my last rights by a priest who was called in, Dr. Joffe  rushed me back into surgery and undid the gastric bypass as my body was somehow rejecting the operation and shutting down. I awoke in intensive care on a respirator machine. Dr. Joffe saved my life. After healing, 8 months later...I had the Gastric bypass over again against his better judgement but I told him I would go have it done elsewhere if he didn't. He knew my health risks and didn't want me to go elsewhere so he reluctantly scheduled me for February, Friday the 13th expecting me to cancel with that date. I went through with the operation with no complications this time around. I lost 126 pounds. I was very desperate, and wanted the weight gone. This was a last resort for me, and it worked. Two decades passed and  I chose to go back to him to have a couple more surgeries as no other doctor could find what my problems were. Let me say, this had nothing to do with the gastric bypass. He operated and fixed me up again. He found what other doctors could not (Gall bladder & Heria related).  Anyone who has surgery performed by Dr. J. Joffe will have the best of care. I do not believe the accusations that are out there about him. I have had several surgeries by him (5 to be exact) and I have had nothing but the best of care. It is too bad that most doctors out there do not share his compasion for what they do best. He saved my life. I owe him my life. I wish Dr. Jacobo Joffe all the best in Mexico and regret to have lost such a compasionate and respectable doctor in Toronto. 
DGauweiler 

Dr. Joffe plead no contest to the charges against him.    Doesn't sound like someone who is innocent now does it?

 He worked on me too, He saved my life, and now I need him again and he is gone, what am I going to do? I will never find a DR like him in Nova Scotia Canada! There is no one like him in the world if I don't find him I might die! I don't want anybody else to work on me. I wish I could find him. I don't know what I will do, there is no one in Halifax that can help me is what my Doctor said yesterday.

Dr. Joffe also saved my life and he acted inappropriately with me. He was a highly skilled surgeon and extremely professional.

Good for him that he is moving on with his life in Mexico! 

Do you mean he acted "inappropriately"?  That doesn't sound very "professional."  Perhaps you meant to type "appropriate."

Yes, he is moving on with his life in Mexico now practicing in Guadalajara.  However I do not think that is a good thing as he will have patients who do not know that he has lost his medical license in Canada due to unethical actions.  Just because you were not the victim of his sexually
predatory practices does not change the fact of what he did.  Count yourself lucky, unless you actually meant to say that he acted "inappropriately" as you wrote.

 I need to find him because I need more work done, can you tell me how to find him? I don't care what he did, he is the best doctor in the world at what he does, he is the Tiger Woods of weight loss. Please help me find him, I would be so thankful as it will save my life.

Let's get the story straight here. Dr. Joffe made a mistake by getting involved with a previous patient he worked on. This relationship went on for quite some time. This PREVIOUS patient also got her sister involved in the relationship which also went on for quite some time.
He pleaded no contest because he did have a relationship with both sisters. This may not have been the smartest thing for him to do, however it happened and that's why he pleaded no contest.
Both sisters were involved with him at the same time.
It's not inapropriate touching when you have a relationship for a long time. They were involved.
He didn't contest it because he did have a relationship with them, he didn't deny it...He just got shafted and that was his only mistake. Anyone would be lucky to have him as a doctor. I wouldn't be here if I didn't have him as my surgeon.
A friend of my friend wanted the same surgery as I and her family doctor had not heard about him before, so her family doctor sent her to someone else at another hospital...she developped the some complications that were not as bad as the complications I had endured and she died. I am sure if Dr. Joffe had been her surgeon, she would still be alive today. This was 25 years ago.
He was always very compasionate with his patients. I can see how someone can mis-lead his intentions.
The relationship with these two sisters went on for quite some time which is why he did not contest it. If it was innapropriate touching why did the two sisters wait so long before reporting it. They enjoyed the relationship they had. Don't you think perhaps there might have been some jealousy happening? We are talking about 2 years here that they were involved.