State officials have revoked the prescription-writing license of Glade B. Curtis, the obstetrician who in 1991 was stalked by Richard Worthington during a siege at Alta View Hospital.
Worthington, who committed suicide in prison, killed nurse Karla Roth during the standoff.Curtis' license to practice medicine was put on probation for five years after an investigation revealed he had been writing bogus prescriptions for the painkiller Lortab and then abusing the drugs, according to the Department of Occupational and Professional Licensing.
Curtis, who has continued to practice at Alta View, did not contest the charges and agreed to undergo a psychiatric evaluation, to enroll in a drug-treatment program for the third time since 1992, to get follow-up counseling if necessary and to submit to random blood and urine tests.
Breaking his silence for the first time since the siege, Curtis said Monday that he plans to do everything the state requires to maintain his physician's license.
Asked whether his addiction has anything to do with the 1991 hostage crisis, Curtis said: "I would have to say it does."
Curtis was the target of Worthington's rage on Sept. 20, 1991, because of a tubal ligation he performed on Karen Worthington, the gunman's wife.
Upset that his wife could have no more children because of the surgery, Worthington stormed the hospital armed with a bomb, a .357 magnum handgun and a shotgun. He searched for the doctor, screaming his name while prowling the halls.
As Worthington was grilling Roth about Curtis' whereabouts, the doctor was standing only 10 feet away. Nursing supervisor Susan Wooley motioned for Curtis to duck behind the counter. The doctor crawled into an empty patient room and phoned police.
During the 18-hour standoff, Worthington shot Roth in a parking lot and then held five adults and two newborns hostage before surrendering.
He committed suicide in a Nevada prison two years after pleading guilty to first-degree felony murder.
Alta View Hospital spokesman Jess Gomez said Monday that as long as Curtis has a valid license to practice medicine in Utah, he will remain on staff.
"The only statement we have is we would wish Dr. Curtis the best in getting whatever issues he needs to get resolved," Gomez said.