A coke-sniffing, gas-inhaling doctor kept practicing after ordered to stop, state says
A Stuart doctor who the state of Florida says sniffed cocaine off his desk and inhaled nitrous oxide at work has had his medical license suspended for writing controlled substance prescriptions.
That violates the restriction put on Dr. Timothy Sigman’s license in January. According to that emergency restriction order (ERO), Sigman could no longer practice until he got the recommended treatment for the substance abuse problems demonstrated above.
That ERO was delivered to Sigman personally on Jan. 29. This emergency suspension order (ESO), which came down June 23, said Sigman issued controlled substance prescriptions at least 10 times between Jan. 30 and May 20.
This isn’t the first time a government agency said Sigman, 49, ignored the rules. In 2014, Sigman was acquitted in federal criminal court of fraud, selling controlled substances and steroid trafficking.
Four years later, the ERO said, Sigman was working at Jupiter medical clinic NovaGenix when his supervisor noticed the nitrous oxide tanks got low much more quickly than they should have. Sigman’s co-workers noticed “volatile, aggressive behavior toward colleagues,” “unusual behavior” around patients and erratic attendance.
“Camera footage revealed that on at least two occasions in late 2018, Dr. Sigman inhaled the clinic’s nitrous oxide after hours,” the ERO said.
Also, in 2018, the supervisor saw white powder on Sigman’s desk, which the doctor admitted was cocaine. The ERO said he also admitted to sometimes drinking at work.
NovaGenix firing Sigman didn’t halt his consumption of alcohol or cocaine, the ERO said. In fact, he added psilocybin mushrooms to the mix. During a DOH-ordered independent evaluation, Sigman said he’d also been prescribed medical marijuana, Valium and pain medication.
The evaluating doctor said Sigman’s substance abuse made him an undue risk to patients and recommended “an inpatient detox program followed by at least 30 days of inpatient substance abuse treatment.”
This story was originally published June 30, 2020 at 11:40 AM with the headline "A coke-sniffing, gas-inhaling doctor kept practicing after ordered to stop, state says."
