Kevin M. Cahill has been in New York for a long time. He was a senior adviser to Gov. Hugh Carey and helped shape the state's health agencies.
Ronald Reagan and Pope John Paul II visited a private practice on Fifth Avenue. The American Irish Historical Society is run by Dr. Cahill and his family.
Two years ago, a Colorado woman filed a lawsuit against the 86-year-old doctor, accusing him of starting a romantic relationship with her when she was 19 years old.
According to the patient's lawsuit, the doctor fondled her breasts, penetrated her anus with his finger or object, and kissed her while she was in the exam room.
Since the suit was filed, another former patient has come forward. According to the doctor's lawyer, the State Health Department is investigating.
He said that the allegations were not true. The doctor who has not been charged with a crime did not reply to requests for an interview.
Mr. McGinity said that the woman was exploiting a friendship for financial gain and had demanded compensation before she took legal action. He doesn't think there's any truth to the idea that he pressured her for something more than friendship.
A number of patients have accused doctors of sexually abusing them, members of a profession that is largely self-regulated and accustomed to deferential treatment from the public.
Megan Wesko is the former patient who sued the doctor.
Statutes of limitations were in effect when her lawsuit was filed. Legal experts think there will be a lot of litigation next year.
The Adult Survivors Act gives sexual assault victims one year to file civil suits against their attackers, even if the assaults took place decades ago. Existing civil suits can be expanded to include instances of abuse over a longer period of time.
The New York Times has reviewed hundreds of emails and dozens of handwritten cards and voice messages and appears to support Ms. Wesko's contention that the physician pursued a romantic relationship with her after meeting her as a teenager.
Ms. Wesko told The Times that she didn't want to have an intimate relationship with the doctor.
She said in an email that she wanted nothing more than a friendship.
He wondered if a young woman could fall in love with an old man. Love will disappear in the stars if that happens for us.
The Hippocratic oath forbids sexual contact between a doctor and a patient, and the American Medical Association prohibits it.
A professor of medicine at the Berman Institute of Bioethics says that romantic relationships between physicians and patients are not allowed. There is no debate about that. It isn't allowed.
Ms. Wesko did not stop communicating with Dr. Patients are often uncertain about whether an exam is appropriate because they fear no one will take their word, according to Dr. Paul Appelbaum.
He was nice to me and helped a lot of people, so they worry that he will end his career.
After a trip to Nepal, Ms. Wesko consulted Dr. Cahill. She said that the doctor penetrated her with his finger or object while she was in the room. She didn't know which.
According to travel-medicine experts, there is no need for an exam at a first appointment. Doctors usually prescribe antibiotics.
He asked Ms. Wesko if he could open doors for her to the world of international humanitarian work and recite a poem by W.B. Yeats.
This guy is the smartest, most charming, well-read person that I have ever met. He would be a mentor to me.
She was told to come for a follow-up visit and attend a concert at the American Irish Historical Society. She said he told her she could stay in a room at the hospital.
She said he tried to kiss her when he showed her to his office at the hospital after the concert.
He apologized as she said, "I thought there was a connection."
The spokeswoman for the hospital that is now part of Northwell Health refused to comment. She said the doctor hadn't worked for the hospital in five years.
Ms. Wesko moved to the west and didn't see the doctor again for a decade. The doctor left scores of voice messages after writing letters and calling. He said he wanted to show her his apartment in New York.
He accused her of spurning his love because she was immature and Coward and demanded to know how she could be so sure.
Ms. Wesko's response was terse and less frequent. She said she was taken to emergency rooms many times over the next few years. She tried to get in touch with a doctor in Colorado, but she couldn't find one.
She had to have a specific type of surgery to get a diagnosis. She had her case taken by specialists at the New York hospital. She said that he took over everything after jumping in.
The hospital and surgeons were able to waive their fees because her health plan wouldn't cover them. He insisted that Ms. Wesko come to him.
Ms. Wesko objected to the exam being done by her doctor. She needed to meet the demands of the doctor or she would not be able to receive the surgery that he had arranged.
During the second exam, Dr. Cahill kissed her on the mouth and fondled her breasts.
Most doctors' offices have nurse or chaperones in the exam room.
He lamented in a voice message that he couldn't address the barriers that had been built. I can't grow old.
After her surgery, Ms. Wesko began talking with a therapist. He used his position as a doctor to touch her sexually, and she thought he had preyed on her.
She said she was being groomed the entire time.
She demanded that he give up the title to the Manhattan apartment that he had forced her to visit in order to make up for the trauma she felt he had caused.
Mr. McGinity said that she could go to jail if she pressed charges.
Even if Ms. Wesko wins, she won't get a lot of money. A judge has ruled that any monetary compensation in the case be capped at the amount of her debt, about $30,000, and go to reimburse her creditor.
She said she could have married him if she wanted his money.
Abusers know they can count on the fact that not many women do it. There are certain things that are too large to ignore.
Another former patient told The Times about a similar exam.
A global outreach program sponsored a trip for Natalie Mauro in 2006 after she received shots. She was sick when she came back.
Ms. Mauro was given a paper gown, but it was so small that it didn't close, so she put it on. Ms Mauro said in an interview that the man ripped the front of her gown when he came in.
He inserted something into her anus after examining her breasts and lying on her side. Ms Mauro said she remembered gasping.
She told her boyfriend that she felt raped by a doctor.
Bob Howe said that any referrals made by university representatives were formal. Mr. Howe said that Dr. Cahill was an "honorary" position at the university. He said that there was a severing of ties between the two in 2020.
Mr. McGinity said that the doctor does not deny conducting anal exams. He is a doctor and also performs rectal exams.
The lawyer said that the gowns that were given to the young women were standard gowns that an adult woman could wear.
He didn't deny that Dr. Cahill ripped the gowns open, but he did say that it was appropriate.
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