A former Illinois dentist was sentenced to prison after officials said he stole medicine intended to be used as anesthesia during surgery, leaving his patients crying and moaning in pain.
Phillip M. Jensen, 64, pleaded guilty to two counts of drug diversion, two counts of acquiring a controlled substance by fraud, tampering with consumer products resulting in serious bodily injury and two counts of false statements relating to health care matters, according to a Dec. 20 news release from the U.S. Attorney's Office for the Central District of Illinois.
He was sentenced to 15 years in prison.
McClatchy News reached out to Jensen's attorney who did not wish to comment.
Jensen was a licensed dentist in Springfield, Illinois, where he specialized in oral and maxillofacial surgery, according to an indictment.
Jensen used fentanyl as a form of anesthesia during surgery, according to court records.
Between December 2019 and August 2020, Jensen stole fentanyl for his own use, officials said. He would take half of the fentanyl out of the vials they were in then replace it with saline and glue the cap back on, prosecutors said.
He then administered the half doses to his patients for surgery, according to court records.
It wasn't until the staff noticed patients "were moving, moaning, and otherwise showing signs of pain and distress during surgery" that it was discovered Jensen was stealing from the vials, officials said.
"In a further effort to hide what he had done, Jensen made false entries into his surgical records claiming that he had given quantities of full-strength and unadulterated fentanyl to his patients to control their pain. He further billed both public and private insurance for these surgeries utilizing these same falsified records," officials said.
During the trial, several of Jensen's nearly 100 victims came forward, including a woman who said after her child's surgery, the child cried and told her they "felt everything," according to officials.
One patient said she woke up during surgery and when Jensen noticed he "struck (her) in the head with an instrument and completed the surgery," extracting multiple teeth and "shaping and smoothing" bones in her jaw "while she was conscious and lacking pain management," officials said.
"People are never as vulnerable as when they place their faith in a health care provider to not only treat their condition but to administer anesthesia and pain medicine during that treatment. Jensen abused that faith and hurt others in the process. Because of this prosecution, Jensen will not be permitted to practice medicine again and will be prevented from hurting members of our community in the future," U.S. Attorney Gregory K. Harris said.