Ariya Ouskouian, a 23-year-old student at the University of California-Irvine, faces up to 11 years in prison on some very serious charges. According to the Orange County district attorney’s office, Ouskouian faces one felony count of providing a medical diagnosis while impersonating a doctor and eight misdemeanor accounts of “representing oneself as a licensed medical practitioner.”
According to reports, Ouskouian impersonated a doctor at two local hospitals and was treating and diagnosing patients on multiple occasions.
Ouskouian gained access to restricted areas by simply saying he had lost his identification badge and requesting a temporary one.
From the New York Post:
In May, Ouskouian allegedly diagnosed a man, who has not been identified, regarding a growth on his neck in a consult room at UCI. On seven different occasions between April and June, he also allegedly impersonated a doctor at Children’s Hospital of Orange County.
“Ouskouian is accused of claiming to have lost his hospital badge and requesting a temporary one be issued on each of these occasions,” the district attorney’s office said in a statement. “When hospital staff became suspicious of the defendant and requested verification of his doctor status, Ouskouian is accused of providing the name of a UCI personnel.”
He has since been released on $20,000 bond.
There is still no word on why Ouskouian made the decision to impersonate a doctor. The good news, however, is that it is not believed that he had any access to patient records and outside of the one man he diagnosed it is not believed that he diagnosed any additional patients despite having interactions.
