SALEM, Ark. -- Country doctors are an increasingly rare breed in the Ozarks. But a beloved small town MD, revered by his many patients, is in big trouble with medical authorities. It turns out to be a case of: Physician, heal thyself, so Salem's tiny hospital can get better.

Fulton County Hospital has only 25 rooms and usually has just 10 patients but it is a hospital. And Dr. David Kauffman's clinic is right out back. Judy Cates is a patient of the well-liked, hard working internist.

“I love Dr. Kauffman and lots of people do,” said Cates.

But the doctor is out, sent to rehabilitation by the Arkansas Medical Board after being convicted of drunken driving in 2004 and charged again twice last year.

“No, we haven't looked the other way on this. We feel he's a very competent physician and has done an excellent job for us,” said Fulton County Hospital Board Chairman Gary Aldridge.

Records also show Kauffman has been investigated for substance abuse issues for the past decade. Allegations of marijuana use, narcotics abuse, and prescription forgery, were investigated by the state board but dismissed.

Kauffman’s medical license was briefly revoked in 1999 and then suspended this summer. On Oct. 6, the board decided his off-duty drinking was a danger to his patients.

“But we feel, with proper treatment, he should be able to return to practice,” said Aldridge.

About 1,500 people live in Salem, in a county of about 11,000. Recruiting doctors in rural areas is tough.

“They go to a metropolitan area and have a higher pay, and can be financially better off, and it’s hard to compete,” said Donna Hodges, interim chief executive officer of the hospital.

Losing a doctor who admits patients to the local hospital is tough.

“He admits half of the patients that come to the hospital, through our emergency room,” said Hodges.

The hospital is in the midst of a $5 million upgrade and expansion.

“We're adding a new emergency room, operating room, X-ray facility and lab,” said Aldridge.

Caring for Kauffman's patients helps pay off construction loans. And, with 200 people on the payroll, the hospital is Salem's largest employer.

“It would affect the revenue in this town if something happened to the hospital,” said Aldridge.

Administrators and fellow physicians swear Kauffman was regularly drug tested, and told the medical board that losing him could force the hospital to close if he's not re-instated. Cates says the sooner he returns to his practice, the better.

“I want him back, as soon as possible,” she said.

A reporter’s repeated requests to Kauffman for an interview about the board’s action went unanswered before he went into rehab. The Arkansas Medical Board will not reconsider Kaufmann’s license status until sometime in December, after he has completed treatment.
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If people want to find out about their personal physician's standing with the state medical board, and his or her professional record, they can check online at the Arkansas Medical Board. However, they must make a written request for information or set up an appointment in Little Rock to view what's on file.

The Missouri Board of Healing Arts has a similar Web site but you can look up information on the spot on it.