This email was sent to NMT, from a Rafael Diaz, recording an experience at the Lake City VA Medical Center. It’s an unusual chain email that doesn’t appear to ask anything from its recipient. We present it to our readers, unless directed to do something otherwise.
Rafael A. Díaz Nieves
Live Oak, FlSWORN STATEMENT
Friday, March 13, 2009Wrongdoer:
Dr. James Kim, Psychiatrist
North Florida/South Georgia
Veterans Health SystemFacility:
Lake City VA Medical CenterDr James Kim has violated my HIPPA LAW rights and has endangered my life. While under his care in numerous occasions I have reminded him that I was his patient not my wife Edna Irizarry, I expressly said to him that I don’t want him talking anything about my treatment with her and anyone else. My privacy is my paramount, especially regarding my Mental Health care because of the stigma society gives to this matters. On the month of August 2005 I was prescribe Quetiapine Fumarte (generic name) of Seroquel. I tried this medication and informed Dr. Kim that I will not take this medication anymore because of the reaction I got from it. As soon I took it I went short of breath and felt like I was dying I was turning blue because I start breathing and had to force myself to breath. Thank god I just tried with a little peace like 1/8 of the pill and this reaction lasted about 2 hours. I remember this because in my entire life I have never reacted so violent to a medication. This turned out to be an allergic reaction to this medication.
In several occasions I communicated Dr. Kim that for some reasons the sleeping aid medication was not coming in to my home via mail and that I was buying over the counter sleeping aids. When I came to be under his care I was taking Dilanting to prevent the headaches that causes seizures on me and Fioricet without codeine because codeine gave me more headaches and Ambiance as needed to help me go to sleep when the pain is too hard. My compensation is for Service Connected Organic Brain Syndrome as secondary to Service Connected Posttraumatic Headaches.
I have told this to him in various occasions and in one time he answered me that after talking to my wife she explained him that my compensation was for bipolar disorders among other things. Immediately I told him that I was the patient and not she, and that I don’t want to have to prove myself to him. And we never talk about the subject again.
1- Dr. James Kim Violation of the HIPPA Law has been rampant, in my case. He had no right to discuss anything of my treatment with no one specially Mrs. Irizarry
2- Regarding the medication, once I said NO, he should have stopped prescribing it and using the US Postal Service to send that medication to my home. After requesting a copy of my treatment with him I discovered that as soon I informed Dr. Kim that the medication gave such violent reaction He appointed Mrs. Irizarry in charge of my medicate me without my knowledge and he had no right to do so. (Thank God Mrs. Irizarry have not decide to kill me at that time. I have found bottles full of this medication hiding all over the home.)
3- The fact that I was medicated against my will or knowledge cannot be denied. Do to the way Mrs. Irizarry used against me so many starts and withdrawals with this medication that had harmed my body. Now I have Diabetes Type 2 with Peripheral Neuropathy, Tardive Dyskenesia that makes me look like I have Parkinson’s disease. All of them well known side effects of Seroquel. Not even the state have the right to medicate a person without His/hers will without “Do Process”. But for some reason Dr. Kim and Mrs. Irizarry did.
4- After Mrs. Irizarry abandoned the home I have discovered various bottles of Quetiapine Fumarte or Seroquel, hidden in different parts of my house. My condition is that I have Traumatic Brain Syndrome or TBI that causes Migraine headaches, seizures and a Congestive problem that causes me to loose or forget things while in stress and that is the reason of my compensation. This medication kills people with TBI. One of the side effects of this medication is Neuroleptic Malignant Syndrome and that is a fact. (Please find document with definitions and causes attached) especially people with TBI. It has come to light that Mrs. Irizarry has been trying to kill me in various occasions among other things. For this there are witnesses and one of the weapons Mrs. Irizarry has used is this medication. Because she knows the side effects and how dangerous are for me because her mother is a Pharmacist and the first time I took this medication she was one the persons I contacted and advise me and her daughter of the side effects and how dangerous it was specially for people with brain damage. Also at that time Mrs. Irizarry was going to College in order to become a nurse.
After reading my medical record I discover that Dr. Kim was adjusting the milligrams of this medication, without my knowledge. I don’t know with whom he was discussing this treatment. What I do know it was not with me because from the beginning I reject this treatment or medication. I have had episodes of MNS that are documented. This I discovered after requesting a copy of my medical records from Shands of Live Oak. One of the many occasions that I passed out since September 2007 an ambulance was called to my home and Mrs. Irizarry informed the paramedics that I was taking Quetiapine and that we were having problems and I did not know how to deal with them. (Nothing further from the truth for that you can ask Mr. William Nieves Social Worker at the Lake City VA medical Center) at the Hospital the ER DR ask me what medications I was taking and because in years I have not see any coming in via the US Mail in to my home, I said none. If I don’t know I am taking it.. How can I deny treatment?
5- On December 2008 I learn that Dr Kim was supposedly worried that I was delusional because one occasion he ask me about my family in Puerto Rico. And after I told him about them, things like my Uncle was the Comptroller of Puerto Rico that my Sister was a lawyer. He told me that my wife told him that that was the sort of thing I was inventing in my head. After I learn that I requested some family members I including my Uncle Manuel Diaz Saldaña Comptroller of the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico. (Please find copy of the letters attached as support of this complaint)
6- I have knowledge that recently Suwannee County Deputy Sheriff Robinson (386-362-2222) called Dr. Kim and that Dr Kim told him that I was schizophrenic and I was inventing all this. This was told to me by Robinson on the afternoon of March 12, 2009 at my residence. Now that Dr. Kim knows that he was deceived by Mrs. Irizarry he is trying to cover His crimes with this label. And that make him an accessory of Mrs. Irizarry crimes against me.
7- The first bottle of medication can be considered malpractice at best, but after the second bottle on and especially in conjunction with Mrs. Irizarry to give me the medication without my knowledge is irresponsible and criminal act of him and could had coasted me my life. I have found various bottles that should not have been sent to my address using the US POSTAL SERVICE specially knowing that Mrs. Irizarry will intercept them. These have been found by family and friends after Mrs. Irizarry abandon the home.
8- There is a matter of a letter that Mrs. Irizarry used in court to take custody of my children that appears to be a diagnostic and is sign by Dr. Kim. Mrs. Irizarry said that it was given to her by Dr. Kim but there is no record of such letter been requested by me that am his patient. I was granted custody of the children last year and with that letter that basically say that I am crazy they were taken from me. (Please find document attached)
9- I am alive by the Grace of God. But for the rest of my life I will have to deal with the Diabetes, Neuropathy and the Dyskinesia and that is not right. I don’t deserve this. Dr. James Kim has violated my privacy, HIPPA Law Rights, My trust and above of all put my life in grave danger of getting kill by Mrs. Irizarry using the medication that he provided her.
10- Without knowledge of the circumstances that are happening in my home. The domestic violence that I have endure, since September 2007, at the hands of Mrs. Irizarry. And the violence that my children were exposed at the hands of Mrs. Irizarry. He has stated that the children are in danger with me and talk to DCF about me. There are witness of the battery and abuse the children and me have endured trying to deal with her. First he should have not volunteer medical information without my knowledge and second he had no right to interfere in my personal life. I am the one that was taking care of the children since they were born and especially after Mrs. Irizarry start disappearing for days and weeks and not let anyone know where she were.
11- I am been force by this situation to abandon the house and lose everything I have including the home. Because he, validated the crimes of Mrs. Irizarry against me. I am been treated less than human and I have to endure the humiliation of been stigmatized by Mrs. Irizarry with the help of Dr. Kim. I am been deny entrance to public buildings and now because of the information he volunteer been humiliated by the law enforcement community in more than one occasion. (Please find sworn statement about one of those incidents)
On February 13 2009 at about 1:30 P.M. I, Rafael Angel Diaz Nieves of 9677 105 Dr Live Oak, Fl. 32060 went to the FDLE office located on 815 North Ohio Avenue Live Oak, FL 32064, as instructed by a Suwannee County Deputy Sherriff. The FDLE office has an intercom at the entrance. I proceeded to press the button and announce my name as instructed by the sign posted. The office has a glass door. The receptionist waved at me and walk to the door to grant me entrance to the building when all of the sudden she stopped about 2 feet from the door and then she turned around and rapidly disappear behind a wall behind the reception desk. Then I saw another woman (second person) that also waved at me and walked towards the door and she also turned around and hid in the same area. When I saw what happened got closer to the glass door. Then I saw an Special Agent Robert M. Shotwell whose office is in the front area of the building and with whom I have met before, trying to hide behind a diagonal wall. As he was trying to hide, I saw him making gestures to the other two women to not let me in.. It was very sunny and I stood there for more than ten minutes and pressed the button a few times more because I knew there were people inside the building and close to the reception. No one opened the door to let me in. No one came to explain why they would not open the door to me.
I stood underneath the hot Florida sun for more than 10 minutes and they would not open the door to me. I had to leave without being attended. My entrance was denied. I had no choice but to leave. As I was driving away I saw a white person enter the building trough the same entrance and to the same offices I was denied access. I am the only the only Puerto Rican who’s also a 100% disable US Veteran in Live Oak. These are facts known by the Special Agent I have talked to before and was making denigrating gestures about me. This is the first time in my life I have been denied access to a public building. That day I was humiliated, discriminated and abused by Special Agent Robert M. Shotwell and the employees of the FDLE. I have been mortified since that day; I still feel the humiliation and cannot believe what happened, but it did happened. The whole event made me feel less than human.
