Regulatory oversight failure

Washington OB-GYN Practiced for Years Despite Sexual Misconduct Claims

This case concerns Dr. mark Mulholland, a Washington OB-GYN who continued practicing for years despite multiple patient complaints alleging sexual misconduct during pelvic exams. Four women filed complaints with the state medical commission between 2022 and 2024, but the board did not restrict his license until September 2025. During that delay, Mulholland continued seeing patients, some of whom later filed additional complaints.

Incident date: December 5, 2022 Location: Washington State Status: Open
Framework connection

How this case connects to the larger accountability framework.

What happened

Documented case record

This case concerns Dr. mark Mulholland, a Washington OB-GYN who continued practicing for years despite multiple patient complaints alleging sexual misconduct during pelvic exams. Four women filed complaints with the state medical commission between 2022 and 2024, but the board did not restrict his license until September 2025. During that delay, Mulholland continued seeing patients, some of whom later filed additional complaints.

Why this matters

State medical board restricted the physician's license in September 2025 after multiple patient complaints, following years of continued practice.

This record is here because it helps show how institutions, services, and community conditions can combine to produce preventable harm.

Framework categories

Case-based evidence

These labels show which broader measurement or planning frameworks this case can speak to.

Case overview

What happened, why it matters, and what systems were involved.

What happened
This case concerns Dr. mark Mulholland, a Washington OB-GYN who continued practicing for years despite multiple patient complaints alleging sexual misconduct during pelvic exams. Four women filed complaints with the state medical commission between 2022 and 2024, but the board did not restrict his license until September 2025. During that delay, Mulholland continued seeing patients, some of whom later filed additional complaints.
Why this matters
State medical board restricted the physician's license in September 2025 after multiple patient complaints, following years of continued practice.
What systems were involved
Healthcare
Who was affected
Patients receiving reproductive or gynecological healthcare
Non-medical conditions affecting health
Healthcare access
Record link name
washington-ob-gyn-practiced-for-years-despite-sexual-misconduct-claims
What barriers were present

Barriers named in this record.

Regulatory oversight failure Healthcare Healthcare access Patients receiving reproductive or gynecological healthcare State medical board restricted the physician's license in September 2025 after multiple patient complaints following years of continued practice.
Related community conditions

Conditions linked through public indicators.

No related community conditions have been linked yet.

How the harm happened

What failed, what was missing, or what made the harm worse.

Documented

Regulatory reliance on complaint accumulation rather than early intervention

The oversight system appeared to require multiple complaints over time before acting, rather than intervening after early warning signals, increasing the number of potentially affected patients.

What this is based on
Reporting highlights that complaints “rolled in” over several years while the physician remained in practice.
Documented

Regulatory reliance on complaint accumulation rather than early intervention

The oversight system appeared to require multiple complaints over time before acting, rather than intervening after early warning signals, increasing the number of potentially affected patients.

What this is based on
Reporting highlights that complaints “rolled in” over several years while the physician remained in practice.
Documented

Delayed medical board enforcement after patient complaints

The state medical board allowed a physician to continue practicing for years after multiple patients reported sexual misconduct, delaying license restrictions until additional complaints had accumulated.

What this is based on
Propublica reporting documents four complaints filed from 2022 - 2024 and notes that the board did not restrict the license until September 2025
Linked indicators

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Every linked indicator is paired with a plain-language trust note so readers can see why it is here, what it helps show, and what it does not prove by itself.

No linked indicators have been added yet.

This section will show measurable context once relevant public indicators are attached.

Sources

What this case is grounded in.

report

Washington State Department of Health — Practitioner Credential Search

Verification status
Verified
Visibility
Public link
Strength of evidence
Primary source
Notes
Publicly accessible via DOH website

An OB-GYN Was Repeatedly Accused of Sexual Misconduct. The State Medical Board Let Him Keep Practicing.

Verification status
Unverified
Visibility
Public link
Strength of evidence
Secondary source
Open record