Hansen forfeits medical license, fined $10,000

By: 
Jeff Forward

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   Former local doctor Brian J. Hansen has agreed to forfeit his Iowa medical license and pay a $10,000 fine after reaching a settlement with the Iowa Board of Medicine.

    In an Oct. 25 agreement, Hansen entered into a settlement agreement with the board and received a citation for engaging in a pattern of sexual misconduct in violation of the laws and rules governing the practice of medicine.

    Hansen, a doctor of osteopathic medicine, was warned that such conduct will not be tolerated and had a $10,000 civil penalty fine imposed on him. The fine must be paid within 90 days of the agreement.

    Hansen also voluntarily agreed to forfeit his Iowa medical license, which he has held since June 30, 2004. Hansen's license expired on Feb. 1, 2013, after he did not seek renewal. The board had suspended his medical license on Sept. 25, 2012 after the allegations had been probed.

    "He was charged last year and the law requires us to schedule a hearing," said Mark Bowden, the executive director of the Iowa Board of Medicine. "But, we can continue to talk to him about settlement of charges."

    Bowden said the settlement is similar to a plea bargain arrangement in criminal proceedings, but Bowden noted that in this agreement, Hansen received the maximum penalty from the board that he would have had he faced a hearing – a revocation of his medical license and the maximum imposable fine of $10,000.

    "The board reached an agreement with Mr. Hansen that was equivalent to the most significant sanctions he faced," Bowden added.

    Once one of Hampton's most popular and recognizable figures, Hansen served as the medical director and a primary care physician at Franklin General Hospital.

    In January of 2012, Hansen was accused by as many as seven former co-workers and patients of a wide-ranging pattern of sexual misconduct from 2006 until 2012, including inappropriate – and sometimes non-consensual -  sexual conduct including masturbating in front of women, watching pornography on work computers, and various types of harassment.

    Hansen's victims were a combination of hospital co-workers and patients, many of whom not only worked with Hansen but were also treated by him. Hansen was fired from his job at the hospital in June 1, 2012. He later took a position with Hampton-based ABCM Corp. as a consultant not working with patients. However, Hansen was fired from that job  on May 31, 2013 following his pleading guilty and being sentenced.

    Following the accusations, Hansen was investigated by law enforcement officials from the Iowa Division of Criminal Investigations and also by officials from the Iowa Board of Medicine.

    Hansen was eventually charged with eight different criminal allegations – two counts of sexual abuse and six counts of sexual exploitation by a counselor or therapist.   On May 30, 2013, Hansen agreed to a plea bargain deal with prosecutors and plead guilty to one count of sexual exploitation by a counselor or therapists. Hansen was sentenced to a suspended five-year prison sentence, required to register as a sex offender, and ordered to pay fines and restitution as well as undergo intensive sex offender therapy.

    Hansen, whose voicemail message states he works for Hansen Safety and Risk Consulting, is now facing several civil lawsuits in both Franklin County court as well as federal district court for his actions from two different victims – Jennifer Kotenbrink and Nicole Whitney.

    The Chronicle attempted to contact Hansen, however he was unreachable.

    

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