Semiretired Spokane physician put on probation after allegations of misconduct

A longtime Spokane physician formerly employed by an urgent care clinic in Franklin Park has been placed on probation by state regulators after multiple allegations by female patients of unprofessional conduct.

Thomas J. Osten was already facing allegations of inappropriate touching and comments to women he treated when another female patient reported similar actions in April 2021. Osten, who was first granted a physician’s license in Washington in 1970, retired from the Franklin Park Urgent Care clinic last June, an office representative said Wednesday.

In March 2021, the Washington Medical Commission held a hearing in which three female patients alleged Osten tried to lift their shirts without permission, made inappropriate comments about their appearances and touched them inappropriately. The commission found that Osten’s actions constituted abuse and placed him on a three-year probation.

Osten challenged the findings in Spokane County Superior Court in September, defending his standard of care with the women and arguing he hadn’t been given a fair hearing.

A fourth woman came forward to the Washington Medical Commission, alleging that, several weeks after his hearing before the medical commission on the previous charges, Osten had attempted to lift her shirt without permission during an exam for flu-like symptoms. Osten also was accused of making inappropriate remarks about the woman’s appearance while her husband was present in the exam room.

“Less than two months after (Osten) sat through the hearing listening to how his comments and actions affected his patients, he engaged in very similar conduct with a female patient,” the statement of charges, filed Jan. 7, read.

A Spokane County Superior Court judge dismissed Osten’s challenge of the previous disciplinary findings on Feb. 22. A call to his attorney was not immediately returned Wednesday afternoon.