The state will permanently revoke the medical license of Kurt Froehlich, a well-liked and respected Cincinnati physician, this week for repeated instances of sexual misconduct, including one case that resulted in a criminal conviction.
In two cases, Froehlich used his finger to show women the location of their G-spots. In the third case, Froehlich groped a medical assistant in his office. She later pressed charges, and the doctor was convicted in February 2013 of a misdemeanor assault. He was fined $250 and put on six months of non-reporting probation.
Doctors serving on the State Medical Board of Ohio voted Jan. 14 to impose the most severe punishment on Froehlich, an obstetrician-gynecologist with a Cooper Road practice. The penalty goes into effect 31 days after the board’s order, which will be Saturday.
When considering how to punish Froehlich last month, the board briefly considered a one-year license suspension because Froehlich argued work stresses and personal crises triggered behavior that was out of character.
But the minutes of the board meeting show that Columbus doctor Anita Steinbergh called Froehlich’s behavior with the three women “absolutely intolerable.”
“Dr. Steinbergh stated that she is weary of hearing excuses regarding stresses in physicians’ lives. … Dr. Steinbergh continued that for a gynecologist to behave in this manner is base, crude and unacceptable,” according to the meeting minutes…
The medical board’s investigation found that two women who were medical professionals and worked with Froehlich at Bethesda North also were his patients. Froehlich said each woman had asked him to show them how to find their G-spots.
The G-spot is a dense area of nerve endings in the front wall of the vagina, first described by German doctor Ernst Grafenberg. But the medical community has long debated whether such an area exists.
During the board investigation, Froehlich said that in general, when asked, he drew an anatomical picture of the G-spot. But with the two patients, Froehlich said he went further and used his finger to touch their G-spots. He acknowledged he had not received any medical training for such a practice.
The instances occurred in 2007 and 2010. Froehlich had another sexual encounter with the second patient in a room at Bethesda North, but regretted it later and ceased contact.
Froehlich told the board investigator that in 2010, he was mourning the death of his mother-in-law, to whom he was close, and had been diagnosed with prostate cancer. He was on a rigorous diet as well, and his dealings with TriHealth over his practice were not going well.
But in 2012, a female medical assistant came to work temporarily at Froehlich’s practice. She described the atmosphere as loose and relaxed; she said at one point, Froehlich walked in on her while she was pumping breast milk, even though she had put a note on the door asking for privacy.
In late July, however, the medical assistant said Froehlich asked her into his office and after a brief conversation, the doctor approached and groped her, fondling her breast and sticking a hand down her pants. She told the board investigator that when she resisted, Froehlich looked her in the eye and told her it would be best if she did not work at the practice any longer.
