For decades, the Country Doctor Community Clinic has opened its exam rooms to the poor. About half of the patients who visit the Capitol Hill clinic are uninsured; the majority are below the federal poverty line. Most of the staff are women, and the clinic has a reputation as a welcoming, woman-friendly place. Country Doctor has strived to fill a community-service need, which is why allegations that a former employee groped one patient and repeatedly had sex with another have stunned the clinic’s staff.
According to charges filed February 28, a 20-year-old woman has accused Fitsum Fikak, 28, a well-liked medical assistant at the clinic, of fondling her breasts, grabbing her crotch, and forcibly kissing her behind a closed exam-room door. A 30-year-old woman said Fikak had sex with her three times during visits to the clinic from September through January. Seattle police think there may be at least one other victim.
Fikak was charged with indecent liberties after allegedly groping the 20-year-old on February 21. The 30-year-old woman told an SPD detective that she kept telling Fikak “no” but he was “quite persistent and forceful and it scared me to the point” that she just gave in. Police are requesting that prosecutors also charge Fikak with rape based on the 30-year-old’s allegations.
Fikak admitted to having sex with the 30-year-old on two occasions and to kissing and fondling the 20-year-old woman, according to police reports. He told police that the sexual contact with both women was consensual. He also told police he might have inappropriately kissed one more woman.
Police believe Fikak chose women who were particularly vulnerable because they were victims of abuse in the past, according to court documents.
“The thing that keeps going through my mind is that we are here for the well-being of our patients and this is entirely contradictory to that mission,” says Linda McVeigh, the clinic’s executive director.
The clinic’s staff is especially stunned by the allegations because Fikak received excellent references from his training program, passed a criminal background check, and was certified by the state department of health. The health department terminated his medical credentials last week.
As a medical assistant, Fikak was responsible for measuring a patient’s weight, height, and blood pressure. On average, a medical assistant like Fikak would have about three to five minutes of contact with a patient, McVeigh says.
Fikak was hired as a temporary employee in 2005 and hired permanently in January 2006. He was arrested at the Country Doctor Community Clinic, which is at 19th Avenue East and East Republican Street, on February 23.
“We’ve had hundreds of employees at the Country Doctor clinic and never ever had any problem,” says McVeigh. “This has taken our reputation and really damaged it.”
The Country Doctor was founded in 1971 and originally operated from an abandoned fire station.
McVeigh says the clinic, which currently has 65 employees, is hoping to restore trust with its patients by talking to the community. The clinic passed out fliers on Monday, March 5, to inform patients about Fikak’s arrest and ways they can report to someone if they feel unsafe. 