Two doctors disciplined by state medical board

The Board of Registration in Medicine disciplined these physicians at its meeting today.

The panel indefinitely suspended the license of anesthesiologist Dr. Jessica Wolin of Melrose for taking the narcotic painkiller Fentanyl from the pharmacy at Lawrence General Hospital for her own use. Her suspension can be stayed if she completes 18 months of sobriety, undergoes monitoring, and completes a probation agreement. A 1986 graduate of the University of Texas Medical School, she had privileges at the Lawrence hospital, Worcester Surgical Center, and Noble Hospital in Westfield until October 2007.

The board reprimanded Dr. Gary Asher, who practices family medicine in Lunenburg, for sending drug samples to his brother and sister-in-law in Texas. It is against the law to send certain kinds of drugs for more than immediate treatment to non-patients. Asher sent samples of medications to treat high cholesterol, erectile dysfunction, osteopenia, and anxiety to his relatives, who were not his patients, for about five years. The board said he must also complete continuing medical education in medical ethics and prescribing. A 1971 graduate of the Medical College of Virginia, Asher has privileges at Nashoba Valley Medical Center in Ayer.